Kenyan cricket officials should ride on the recent positive developments in the sport locally. Since playing in the ICC Cricket World Cup for the first time in 1996 and earning the prestigious One Day International (ODI) status, Kenya went on to play in the 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 editions of the global showpiece.
But poor leadership, lack of talent development structures and internal wrangling saw Kenya fail to qualify for the 2015 and 2019 editions of the tournament. Kenya subsequently lost its ODI status. The country did not qualify to play at the 2023 World Cup, and has to play in the lowly ICC Cricket World Cup Challenge League “B.”
But positive developments in the last four months have offered hope for revival of the game, particularly the encouraging results posted by the national teams.
The scheduled introduction of the Kenya Twenty20 Premier League (KPL) in February next year is commendable. The men’s team played at the ICC Cricket World Cup Challenge League “B” in Jersey in August, and lost to hosts.
Kenya then hosted its first international cricket match after almost one decade with against Nepal in August. The national team reached the semi-finals of the Africa T20 Cup in South Africa in September, before winning the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup Sub-Regional ‘A’ qualifiers held in Rwanda.
The victory saw Kenya qualify for the World Cup Africa regional qualifiers due for next year in Namibia. Two teams will qualify for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to be hosted by West Indies and the United States. Despite the mixed results, having the national team active again will help improve their game.
Cricket Kenya ought to look for sponsorship for the national team programs as ICC is yet to resume funding.
CK must also fulfil ICC’s requirement of having a functional secretariat and audited financial accounts. BY DAILY NATION