The Tanzania women cricket team finished the just-concluded eighth edition of Kwibuka Women T20 tournament campaign on an impressive note after beating Kenya by 44 runs in the final to clinch the trophy without losing a single game.

The annual memorial tournament is organized by Rwanda Cricket Association (RCA) in remembrance of victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

The finale, held Saturday June 18 at Gahanga Cricket Stadium, was anticipated to decide who, between Tanzania and 2021 champions Kenya, was going to win the trophy through a final playoff as the pair ended the round-robin games leading the table after seven games.

Tanzania were the dark horses throughout the campaign as they headed to the final with an unbeaten record while Kenya only lost to the champions during the round robin prior to a rematch in the final.

The Kenyans thought a victory in the final would be a perfect revenge over Tanzania to successfully defend their title but the Tanzanians proved too tough to beat, especially through their impressive batting and fielding while Kenya’s defeat blamed bad bowling which saw their key players simply eliminated in the early stages of the second innings.

Tanzania won the toss and elected to bat first but it appeared their fielding in the first minutes of the game before they managed to keep their game in control in the final stages through making incredible runs during the last three overs to end the first innings with 114 runs before the team’s women were all eliminated in the last over.

Kenya hoped the score would be simple to outscore in the second innings but their mediocre batting cost them the match. The surprise elimination of team captain Queentor Abel in the first over came as a huge blow for the Kenyans as they hoped she would have won them the game with her incredible batting experience.

In the end, Kenyan players were all out on just 70 runs, 44 runs shy of Tanzania who went on to retain the trophy they won back in 2019.

Tanzania’s perfect batting won them the game and the same factor cost Kenya the final.

Tanzania becomes the Kwibuka Women’s T20 tournament champions for the third time and the second time since 2019. They could not participate in the 2021 edition after the majority of the national team’s players and the coaching staff tested positive for covid-19.

"We could not attend the 2021 edition due to the covid-19 pandemic but we’re excited to be back to the tournament as champions,” said Tanzania head coach

 "We had enough time to prepare for this tournament and I am happy that my players were the difference not only in the final but throughout the tournament. I am proud of the whole team,” he added.

Tanzania’s Perice Kamunya was voted player of the final match during which she made 29 runs to inspire her team to the title.

For her, winning the trophy was the team’s priority from the very beginning of the tournament.

"I am excited by today’s performance. We just followed the coach’s instructions and that was the only key to winning the final,” Kamunya said.