Right-handed batter, Punch Sports Extra reports that Favor Esseibe will captain Nigeria’s senior women’s cricket team, the Female Yellow-Greens, at the 2024 Kwibuka Tournament to be held in Kigali, Rwanda from May 30 to June 8.
Esseibe will take over from retired Blessing Etim who led the team that won bronze medal at the 2023 African Games in Ghana and will head coach Leke Oyede's 14-man roster.
The 22-year-old, who served as an aide to the retired Mr Etim, will be deputised by Abigail Igbobi.
Apart from Esseibe and Igbobie, the team also has players such as Estelle Sandy, wicketkeeper Sarah Etim, Piety Lucky, Salome Sunday, super bowlers Peculiar Agboya, Adekunle Adeshola and Christabel Chukwonye.
Others include Victory Igbinedion, Lilian Udeh, Rachel Samson, Usen Peace and newly invited Anointed Akigbe.
The women's Yellow-Green team concluded a two-week camp at the Nigeria Cricket Federation's High Performance Centre in Benin City on Sunday, ahead of their trip to Kigali on Tuesday (today).
This will be Nigeria's fifth time competing in the tournament, but last year they finished in fourth place after losing to Kenya in the third-place playoff.
It will be the team's first match since winning bronze at the 2023 African Games in Ghana in March, but Oyede said the team will not rest on their laurels in the expanded tournament.
“I believe that not only the countries we win at the African Games will take notice of us, but other countries too,” Oyede told our correspondent.
“So they won't be the same team they were before and we have to raise our game. There are more teams now and we want to do better than other countries.”
Nigeria will face hosts Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kenya, Malawi and Cameroon in the 10th edition of the tournament.
The tournament will be played in a round robin format, with the top two teams then competing against each other to determine the winner.
