Team Nigeria will on Monday depart for a tour of Zimbabwe as part of preparations ahead of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Sub-Regional Qualifier B in Rwanda.

The assistant coach of the senior men’s team, Uthe Ogbimi, said the team would spend eight days in Zimbabwe before departing for Rwanda, ahead of the tournament billed for November 29 to December 10.

Ogbimi told journalists on Wednesday in Abuja that the team was finalising preparations ahead of the tournament in their camp in Lagos.

“Now, we have a 14-man squad to do the battle in Rwanda,” he said. “We are set for the tour of Zimbabwe, which will give us an opportunity to play four T20 matches with clubs in the country as well as make use of their facilities.” 

On the level of training under the team’s new coach, Steve Tikolo of Kenya, Ogbimi said he had brought many modern templates to the team.

“We are working with the new coach, and we have seen him introduce lots of modern trends to our training.

“The boys are adjusting well, and everyone is trusting the process and is ready to improve on their performances.

“The spirit in the camp is so high; the welfare and other aspects are being taken care of. The boys are happy; the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) is also doing its part, and everyone is ready to go,” Ogbimi stated.

The erstwhile cricketer also spoke on Nigeria’s chances at the tournament, as two of eight participating teams would progress to the next phase of qualification.

“To be fair, we fancy our chances based on our pedigree. We feel we should be above the group and be invited for the main qualification phase, where we can play the likes of Uganda and others.

“However, we need to be focused, put in the work and ensure we come top on the qualifiers,” he said. 

(NAN)