Nigeria's Junior Yellow Greens Crush Mozambique to Reach World Cup Qualifiers

The Junior Yellow Greens showed a powerful performance at the ICC U-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup Africa Qualifier Division 2. They defeated Mozambique by 407 runs at the IPRC Oval in Kigali after scoring a tournament-high 461 runs for the loss of six wickets in 50 overs.

The scorecard shows Nigeria's 461/6 as the first innings total. Mozambique struggled and got bowled out for just 54 runs in 23 overs, giving Nigeria a big win by 407 runs.

Nigeria's batting was a mix of calmness, aggression, and explosive hitting. Peculiar Egemasi and Edem Nyong both scored centuries in this match.

Four players were responsible for 385 of the team’s 461 runs. Captain Ali Rahmon played a key role, scoring a solid 41 runs off 46 balls, with eight boundaries, before he was out at 89/1 in the 15th over.

Hossana Omonkhobhio opened the innings strongly, scoring 84 runs from 73 balls. He hit 11 fours and two sixes at a strike rate of 115.07.

Egemasi had an outstanding innings, making 123 runs off 84 balls. He struck 18 fours and three sixes at a strike rate of 146.43 before he was out at 446/5 in the 48th over.

Nyong added to the total with a fantastic unbeaten 137 runs from just 53 balls. He hit 11 fours and 12 sixes at an incredible strike rate of 258.49.

In the second innings, Mozambique's batting collapsed under pressure as Nigeria bowled them out for only 54 runs in 23 overs. Kenneth Boniface led the bowling attack, taking three wickets for 13 runs in three overs.

Princewill Chigozie also shone with the ball, grabbing two wickets for just eight runs in eight overs, including four maidens. Player of the match Egemasi rounded off a great game by taking three wickets for just one run in one over.

This impressive victory not only shows Nigeria's strength but also boosts their chances in the qualification race. They have one game left against Sierra Leone.

With this win, the Junior Yellow Greens are now in second place with six points, two points behind leaders Uganda. Hosts Rwanda also have six points. Ghana and Sierra Leone follow with two points each, but their hopes of promotion are dashed.

Uganda, Nigeria, and Rwanda will join Kenya, Namibia, and Tanzania in Division 1 for the next phase of the 2028 ICC Men’s U-19 T20 World Cup qualifiers next year.