Nigeria has been named as one of the three African countries that Cricket most prized Silverware; the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup would be making a stopover ahead of this year’s championship.
Uyi Akpata, President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, said the Trophy Tour which was kicked off earlier on June 26th at 120,000 feet above the earth, before making a stunning landing at the Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium in Ahmedabad in India would be coming to Nigeria. The trophy was attached to a bespoke stratospheric balloon to achieve the feat.
“Nigeria will be a major stop for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Trophy that is presently on Tour of 18 countries globally, and that is major for us. Being the second successive time in Nigeria is a huge win for our developmental effort.”
The Trophy which would be coming from Uganda and leaving for South Africa is expected to arrive in Abuja on Tuesday, August 29th where it would be received by the board of the Nigeria Cricket Federation and Nigeria Cricket community in the Federal Capital city before being handed to the newly appointed Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Senator John Enoh.
The trophy will head for Lagos on Wednesday, August 30th, where among other things it will be received by the governor Babatunde Sanwo-Olu and will also be on public display at the Tafawa Balewa Cricket Oval, the game’s most revered ground in the country.
“I believe the back-to-back Trophy Tour of Nigeria, first in 2019 and now in 2023, shows how Nigeria, as an emerging cricket development hotbed, is key for the continent. And this is an appreciation to those who have, and still sacrificing to see the game attain an enviable height in the country.
Nigeria has won four global developmental awards between 2019 and 2023 including qualifying for its first World Cup in 2019. This year, Nigeria was named the winner for 100% Female Cricket Initiative of the Year Global Award. This was on the back of a successful girl-child campaign in Zamfara state that yielded over 20,000 entrants in 2022.
Nigeria’s Women’s National Team also won; for the first time, the NCF Women’s T20i Invitational Tournaments after hosting it for four years; this year, the previous editions had been won by Rwanda national Women’s Cricket Team.
“There are positive developments around the game, and the Trophy Tour will only help add more spark to the already excited community we have here,” Akpata added.