It was a great pleasure Cricket Cranes: Uganda Cricket Team's Debut at the T20 World Cup 2024

Uganda made their debut appearance at a T20 World Cup, and it was quite a commendable performance for a first-timer. They were placed in a very difficult group comprising power hitters like New Zealand, a very tricky Afghanistan, and previous two-time winners West Indies. Papua New Guinea was the other associate team in the group.

Prior to the World Cup, there would have been some buzz and excitement surrounding Uganda given their very impressive win over Zimbabwe to ensure they qualified for the World Cup. Off the field, there was even more excitement surrounding their kit, a beautiful yellow jersey with the wings of the crane on the shoulders, arguably one of the best kits for the tournament.

Uganda's opening match was a 125-run defeat to Afghanistan. Despite the heavy loss, it was good to see their bowlers on show, most notably Cosmas Kyewuta, who had figures of 2/25, and captain Brian Masaba with figures of 2/21. We learned that the bowling attack is pretty good, but the batting needs improvement.

Next up was PNG, a matchup that Uganda would have been eyeing long before they arrived in the Caribbean. It would have been their best chance of a victory. PNG posted 77 runs all out, Uganda showing again their bowling prowess. The run chase started off very shaky, but they eventually got over the line and won by 3 wickets with 10 balls remaining. Their best ever result in competitive history and more impressively their first win in their debut at a T20 world cup. They went on to lose by 134 runs to the West indies and by 9 wickets to New Zealand.

The bowling attack of the Cricket Cranes was very impressive and clinical. They definitely have the bowling department secured, but the batting needs to improve to ensure they can post bigger totals and then safely defend with their more than capable bowlers.

Brian Masaba, the captain of the Ugandan cricket team, mentioned that it was also Uganda's first time playing under lights and it took some getting used to. Hopefully, because of this campaign, the powers that be can improve the current infrastructure and provide Uganda with the tools needed to qualify and compete for the next World Cup.

Given all the varying T20 leagues around the world, I won't be surprised to see Cosmas Kyewuta being picked up by a franchise. Cosmas's bowling has been very impressive. He will be a great addition to any bowling attack, and he deserves the exposure that can benefit his national team. Honorable mentions are Alpesh Ramjani and captain fantastic Brian Masaba.

The Cricket Cranes were entertaining to watch; their traveling fans were amazing and supported them all the way to the end. The people of Uganda should be proud of their boys, and all stakeholders need to come together to ensure Uganda can qualify for T20 CWC 2026. I am excited to see their team develop and what future stars they can produce.