Kenya play Qatar in T20 series opener
What you need to know:
- With large squad of 17 contracted players apart from injured Lucas Oluoch, Odoyo will have a selection migraine but he says it is all welcome.
- With the three opening batsman firing from all cylinders, Odoyo must drop one of either new-kid-on-the-block Dhiren Gondaria, ‘prodigal son’ Alex Obanda and in-form Irfan Karim.
Coach Thomas Odoyo was the last man on the dance floor after Kenya were crowned champions for the Four-Nation One Day International (ODI) Quadrangular Series at the Royal Orchid Hotel in Westlands, Nairobi, on Saturday night.
With West Indian superstar cricketer Dwayne Bravo’s monster hit ‘Champion’ blaring the roof, Odoyo did more than enough to convince the full house that he can break a leg with rhythm. This was after his troops ‘shyly’ stood him down during the post-awards dancing competition.
Odoyo, though, brushed off that ‘little no show’ with disdain and said that his team will find its groove when they start the chase for glory in the Four-Nations Twenty20 Quadrangular Series against a Pakistani-oriented Qatar side at Jaffrey’s Sports Club in Nairobi on Monday.
“We showed our class in the ODI Series,” said Odoyo, a former ICC Associate Player of the Year. “Now it’s time for us to turn our guns to the Twenty20 format. The shorter format is where we believe we can play an exciting brand of cricket.”
With large squad of 17 contracted players apart from injured Lucas Oluoch, Odoyo will have a selection migraine but he says it is all welcome.
“These players are all contracted and they must show that they deserve the contracts. I will be shuffling the squad but I will maintain the perfect combination. We’ll go for victory in every match.”
FIRING FROMA ALL CYLINDERS
With the three opening batsman firing from all cylinders, Odoyo must drop one of either new-kid-on-the-block Dhiren Gondaria, ‘prodigal son’ Alex Obanda and in-form Irfan Karim.
The return to form of batting all-rounder Collins Obuya, Nelson ‘Mandela’ Odhiambo, captain Rakep Patel will buoy up Kenya, who will be anxious to make a mark at home and wrap up the series double. The game will be broadcast live by Zuku.
But Qatar boosting of seasoned players of Pakistani origin know that their bowling quartet of Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Mohammed Malik, Norman Sarwar, Iqbal Choudhry plus multi-faceted Tamoor Sajjad must come to the party or else it will be smooth sailing for Kenya in a game that will be telecast live by ZUKU.
Across town at the Nairobi Gymkhana Oval, neighbours Uganda lock horns with Saudi Arabia with their coach Steve Tikolo saying; “We want to continue expressing ourselves and build on the win against Kenya in the ODI Series. A victory to start pursuit for glory is our target in the opener.”
Like in the ODI Series, the top two teams after the preliminary round will play in the final on Friday at Nairobi Jaffrey’s Ground.
