Junior Female Yellow Greens coach Sarah Bhakita has said the team is in high spirits ahead of their debut at the ICC U-19 Women’s World Cup in Malaysia, thanks to their impressive warm-up games against Pakistan and Scotland, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The team concluded their warm-up matches for the tournament with a statement win over the 14th-ranked Scotland on Wednesday, having come close to beating eighth-ranked Pakistan on Tuesday.
According to the coach, the results came with a mix of valuable lessons for the team, and they will execute them at the World Cup proper, starting with the opening game against fellow debutants Samoa on Saturday.
In a closely contested game at the UKM Oval in Bangi, Nigeria pushed Pakistan to their limits, restricting the Asians to 105/6, with disciplined bowling efforts.
In the chase, Nigeria began confidently, reaching 79/1 after 16 overs, but Pakistan’s Quratulain (2/9 in 4 overs) derailed the effort with a superb spell, leaving Nigeria 11 runs short at 94/6.
Bouncing back strongly, Nigeria delivered a clinical performance against Scotland at the Royal Selangor Club on Wednesday with a seven-wicket victory.
Lillian Udeh started as Nigeria dominated in bowling, skittling Scotland for 62 runs in 17.5 overs just as captain Lucky Piety led the batting, smashing an unbeaten 28 off 16 balls, including three sixes. Victory Igbinedion, who also had a good game against Pakistan added a steady 25, sealing the victory in just 11.3 overs with seven wickets in hand.
Not buoyed by their last win over Scotland, the team’s coach, Bhakita, said the team would do better in the World Cup proper.
“The warm-up matches have hinted at what we should expect at the tournament proper. Game-winning builds confidence, and we hope to perform better in the coming games,” the Kenyan told the NCF Media in Malaysia.
After Saturday’s opening game against Samoa, Nigeria will face New Zealand on Monday, January 20 before their last game against South Africa two days later.