Botswana cricket is having a busy season, what with the Under 19s’ impressive performance in Namibia and now the Under 13 boys’ tournament about to commence.
The Under 13 boys are expected to compete for the championship this coming Monday until the 13th of October.
A school to watch out for will be Itumeleng Primary school as they will be fighting to regain their title as defending champions. Last year, Itumeleng took all by surprise when it became the title champions and brought to an end Mojadife’s two-years-in-a-row winning streak.
The teams competing will be cricket teams from different government aided primary schools, which are under the Botswana Cricket Association (BCA)’s developmental program.
The tournament will have about 24 primary schools seeking this year’s Under 13 trophy.
This year, the schools competing for the title are Itumeleng, Philip Moshotle, Oodi, Mojadife, Modipane, Ramogotsi, Kgabo Sereto, Lady Matchson, Bophirima, Magopane, Segopotso, Ketshwerebothata, Rasesa, Boikhutso, Botsalano, Notwane, Ben Thema, Tsogang, St Bernards, and Our Lady of the Carmel, Phapane, Ikageng, Therisanyo, and Ledumang primary schools.
In an interview with The Sunday Standard, the CEO of Botswana Cricket, Girish Ramakrishna, said that this is the highest number of schools they have had competing in the Under 13 tournament since the inception of the developmental programme in 2007.
He said that they are hoping that parents and teachers alike will be present at the matches to show their support for the players.
“There will be prizes for the Man of the Match for every game. We also have prizes for the Best Batsman, Best Bowler and Best Fielder from the semi final stage. There will be prizes for the Player of the Tournament, Emerging Player and team with the best team spirit,” said Ramakrishna.
The fixtures show that the teams are to play on a weekly basis from Monday to Friday.
On Mondays and Thursdays, only single matches will be played, while on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays will see two matches played on each day.
The final is expected to be played on a Wednesday.
