Nigeria to host four-nation West Africa Trophy from Oct 4

Close on the heels of East Africa Cup T20, which was won by Uganda, West Africa Trophy, a T20 cricket tournament comprising four nations – Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ghana and Rwanda will be held in the Nigerian capital, Lagos from October 4 to 15.  

“Lagos, get ready for cricket thrills! From October 4th to 15th, the West Africa Trophy Tournament promises excitement and action!” said the Nigerian Cricket Federation in a tweet on X (formerly called Twitter).

Host Nigeria will open the tournament against Rwanda, which is interestingly an east African nation but will play here too after featuring in East Africa Cup T20. All the matches will be played at the TBS Oval. There will be two matches every day, with the first at 10 am and the second at 2 pm Nigeria time (which is +1 GMT). The final and the 3rd place play-off will be played on October 15.

Nigeria, the host of the tournament, has been one of the African countries given special consideration by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The ICC picked the west African nation as one of the only three African countries for ICC World Cup Trophy tour. Uganda in east Africa, and South Africa were the other countries where the trophy toured in late August and early September.

Nigeria also hosted the trophy ahead of the 2019 World Cup.

“I believe the back-to-back trophy tour of Nigeria, first in 2019 and now in 2023, shows how Nigeria, as an emerging cricket development hotbed, is key for the continent. And this is an appreciation to those who have, and are still sacrificing to see the game attain an enviable height in the country," said Uyi Akpata, the president of the Nigerian Cricket Federation, in a statement.

Cricket, Nigeria, West Africa, Ghana, Sierra Leone, T20