Nigeria women’s cricket team on Monday lost by five wickets to Zimbabwe in a semi-final match at the ongoing African Games.

The game played at the Achimota cricket oval in Ghana saw the Nigerian team win the toss and opted to bat first.

Nigeria’s batting strength could only manage 74 for nine in 20 overs.

In the reply, Zimbabwe needed only 16 overs to reach the target of 75 for the loss of five wickets. Zimbabwe won by five wickets.

At the end of the game, captain of the Nigerian team, Blessing Etim, said the batting line-up struggled to put runs on board.

Ms Etim said, “We struggled with the bat but I am more impressed with our bowling. We have so much to work on in terms of batting and we need to quickly attend to the issue as we face Uganda on Wednesday for a third place spot.’’

The Nigeria cricket team reached the semi-finals of the African Games after finishing second in Group A with four points.

The team now faces Uganda for the third place which would guarantee a podium finish.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe and South Africa will slug it out for the gold medal.

(NAN)