Tanzania women upset the formbook to go top of the Africa Cup by beating arch-rivals Kenya by nine runs at the Lugogo Cricket Oval in Kampala.

Tanzania won the toss, chose to bat and stayed on top of their opponents for much of the game. Opener Monica Pascal piled on 56 as Kenya looked ordinary in the field, and was ably assisted in the middle of the innings by Mwanaiddi Ibrahim, Hadija Hassan and Hawa Salum as they made 109 runs after 20 overs.

In reply, Kenya slumped to 17 for 3 but Margaret Banja’s firefighting 46 and Sarah Bakhita’s explosive 20 got them near the target but they fell nine runs short to hand the Tanzania’s a first win over Kenya since 2007.

Tanzania won the inaugural BMTL indoor tournament, beating Kenya by eight wickets in the final at Dar es Salaam. Tanzania made 125 from their 16 overs, and Kenya fell nine runs short of victory. The third side in the competition were Sri Lanka.

Tanzania have begun preparations for the World Cricket League Division Four tournament in Italy in August by playing six 50-over matches in Mombasa against various Kenyan selections.

They notched their sole win of the brief tour in the first game against a Coast Cricket Association Select XI by 243 runs. The match was the first of a triangular, also featuring a Nairobi Select XI.

Former national Under-19 opener, Sefy Khalifa, showed promise in scoring two half-centuries, while Kassim Nasoro showed why he's a key member of the Tanzanian attack, taking 5 for 29 in the first of the three-match series against the Kenya Select XI. The home team won the series, which followed the triangular, 3-0.

Mombasa Triangular Series

Tanzania 297 for 8 (Khalifa 57, Seth 49, Nassoro 43, Kiseto 32, Amiri 50 not out; Patel 2 for 34, Thakar 2 for 62) beat
Coast CA Select XI 54 (Sulemanjee 12; Ramaiah 5 for 14, Kiseto 2 for 5) by 243 runs

Nairobi Select XI 138 for 8 (20ov.) (F Otieno 36, Kul 39; Ramaiya 2 for 19, Kiseto 2 for 29) beat Tanzania 129 for 7 (20ov.) (Khalifa 33, Kiseto 24; N Odhiambo 2 for 16, Shah 2 for 21) by nine runs

Nairobi Select XI 290 for 8 (Kituku 44, Thampy 50, Onyango 36*, Ngoche 32*; Sulemanjee 3 for 28; Kotecha 3 for 61) beat
Coast CA Select XI 151 for 7 (Sawjani 28, Sulemanjee 29; Patel 3 for 31) by 139 runs

Kenya Select XI v Tanzania

Kenya Select XI 192 (F Otieno 54, Wesonga 55; Nassoro 5 for 29, Mwita 3 for 33) beat Tanzania 145 (Khalifa 54, Kiseto 21, Amiri 26; Oluoch 4 for 16, Shikotra 2 for 21) by 47 runs

Kenya Select XI 247 for 6 (Kituku 89, Anjere 40, Odhiambo 35; Ramaiya 2 for 28) beat Tanzania 205 (Kikasi 45, Kiseto 22, Mwita 32; Odhiambo 3 for 37, Patel 2 for 15, Oluoch 2 for 38) by 42 runs

Kenya Select XI 240 for 9 (Kituku 82, Wesonga 48, Anjere 41 not out; Kiseto 2-44, Mwita 2 for 44) beat
Tanzania 156 (Kikasi 29, Nassoro 32; Thampy 3 for 31, Ngoche 2 for 19, Patel 2 for 21) by 84 runs

The Tanzania Cricket Association has announced it will be building a new ground in the northern town of Arusha, roughly 400 miles north of Dar-es-Salaam

The ground will have an astroturf/concrete pitch and a pavilion and will be ready for use in February 2010.

A board statement said: “The new ground in place will also give TCA … an opportunity to host regional and other international events at an optional venue in Tanzania.”

The Tanzania Cricket Association has revealed that several of its players have spent the summer honing their skills with a club side in Watford, England.

“We've the most brilliant guys as compared to other countries, so it's down to us to drill them thoroughly," board chairman Zulfikar Rhemtullah said. “We're eagerly waiting for them and it's our hope that the quartet will steer the national team to glory.

“They've learnt a lot in England and through them, other local lads will learn some advanced techniques.”

Rwanda's failure to show up - for whatever reason - and some poor weather put a dampener on the first two days of the Africa Cricket Association (ACA) East Africa Under-13 boys' competition in Nakuru, Kenya.

Rwanda were flagged as one of the successes of the African development programme / Cricket Without Borders enterprise, so their absence, if only to gauge the team's progress, was a disappointment.

Matches were being played at Rift Valley Sports Club and Greensteds School, south of Nakuru.

Results
Day One - Kenya 108 for 3 beat Tanzania 96 for 7; Kenya 93 lost to Uganda 94 for 7
Day Two - Tanzania 92 lost to Uganda 93 for 6; Tanzania v Kenya (rained off)

Colin Macbeth

Uganda and Sierra Leone booked their places in the Under-19 World Cup qualifying tournament later this year after finishing first and second in the Africa Under-19 Championship in Zambia. They will join Afghanistan, Hong Kong and the top two teams from the Americas, East Asia-Pacific and Europe regions in a play-off, from which the top five teams from that tournament will join the ten ICC Full Members and hosts Kenya in the 2010 Under-19 World Cup.

Uganda and Sierra Leone met in the final round of matches, and it was Uganda who won a rain-affected game despite being bowled out for 91. Chasing a revised target of 83 in 20 overs, Sierra Leone lost too many wickets too quickly and only managed 35 for 8, Geofrey Nyero returning remarkable figures of 6 for 7.

That result meant that Namibia could have overtaken Sierra Leone with an emphatic win over the hugely disappointing Kenyans, but after they had posted 158 for 7, the match was abandoned six overs into Kenya's reply. The one point Namibia earned was not enough.

Hosts Zambia finished fourth thanks to a 63-run win over Tanzania, but again the weather meant the game was decided by Duckworth-Lewis calculations. Zambia made 133 and Tanzania struggled to 42 for 7 before the rain returned.

Nigeria showed why they finished bottom without a win as they were dismissed for 68 by Botswana, who went on to amble to a six-wicket win.

               P   W  NR   L   Pts      NRR 

Uganda         7   6   0   1    12     -0.31

Sierra Leone   7   5   0   2    10      1.18

Namibia        7   4   1   2     9      0.83

Zambia         7   4   0   3     8      0.10

Kenya          7   3   1   3     7     -0.22

Botswana       7   3   0   4     6     -0.44

Tanzania       7   2   0   5     4     -0.43

Nigeria        7   0   0   7     0     -1.36

Sierra Leone continue to surprise opponents and followers of the Africa Under-19 Championship in topping the table. After the fifth day they are joint-first with Namibia on eight points, but with a superior net run-rate, thanks to another win over Zambia by 85 runs. Chasing 177 Zambia were skittled for 91 with Ibrahim Kabia picking up 3 for 8. Elsewhere, Namibia thrashed Nigeria by ten wickets while Kenya – who are in a disappointing fourth position – beat Tanzania by 19 runs. Uganda pulled off a thrilling one-wicket win over Botswana when they rather underestimated their target of 114, losing nine wickets – three of them to Waseem Tajbhai. Their last pair saw them across the line, however, with overs (if not nerves) to spare.

---- Points table ----
1. Sierra Leone (8 points, NRR: 1.03)
2. Namibia (8, 0.87)
3. Uganda (6, -0.56)
4. Kenya (6, 0.10)
5. Zambia (4, -0.12)
6. Botswana (4, -0.44)
7. Tanzania (2, -0.39)
8. Nigeria (0, -2.02)

Uganda retained their East African Women's Championship title with a ten-run win over hosts Kenya in the final, but it was a tournament that raised major questions regarding the standard of those competing.

Click here for more

The Tanzania Cricket Association (TCA) will hold its annual general meeting in Dar es Salaam on December 14. TCA Secretary General Tom Mhinzi said yesterday that the meeting will be held at the Muhimbili Cricket Academy.

Hamisi Abdallah

	Hamisi Abdallah cracks one through the covers during his 31 against Jersey © ICC

Today is the rest day in the World Cricket League and teams now have a better idea of what they need to do if they are going to progress in this competition.

After a fantastic win against Jersey on Saturday, we (Tanzania) were a bit disappointed to lose yesterday to Hong Kong who was an excellent team. There was a great crowd at that game and there has been lots of interest from the media on a daily basis; cricket has been back page news for the past fortnight which doesn’t always happen here.

Cricket in Tanzania is going from strength to strength and it is a sign of how far that we have come that we can stage this tournament, having held an ICC Africa event here back in 2006.

I play my cricket in Dar Es Salaam, where I work for the Tanzania Cricket Association as a Development Officer, and there is a thriving cricket community with the A league having two divisions, with 15 teams in total and four grounds with turf wickets.

But cricket is also popular in other areas as well and our national side is made up of players from across the country.

Lots of people used to think that only Indians played cricket in Tanzania, but the efforts of the national association to spread the games into schools, which is where I first experienced playing the game, means that the sport is popular amongst black Africans as well.

When I go into the schools and see the talent that is coming up, particularly those guys who come for extra coaching at our Academy, then the future is certainly looking very bright. At the opening ceremony of the event, over 100 children from the local cricket programme had the opportunity to showcase their skills to a watching audience, and I think everybody was very impressed by what they saw.

I spent my morning today going to visit a project run by the Tanzanian Youth Coalition, along with a player or representative from the other five teams, which provides an opportunity for young people in Tanzania to receive education.

The visit was part of the ICC’s partnership with UNAIDS and UNICEF on AIDS awareness, which is a big problem in Tanzania. It was great for the other players to have an opportunity to see a different side to my country and the great work that charities do here.

I don’t think many people at the centre had ever met anybody from the likes of Jersey, Afghanistan or Hong Kong either. Tomorrow the attention will go back on the cricket and it is a massive game for us against Afghanistan who has won their first two matches.

We have played against them in a warm-up match and I can’t wait to try and get another victory in this tournament. We just need to focus on the basics and I think we have a good chance of beating Afghanistan.

Hamisi Abdallah is the Tanzania allrounder, one of a number of players blogging for Cricinfo their experience of the World Cricket League in Tanzania

By Tony Munro

Tanzania has continued its recent youth policy, with their squad for the ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament having an average age of 21.35.

The captain, Hamisi Abdallah, who led Tanzania on their tour of the Kingdom, is 20.

Squad: Hamisi Abdallah (Capt.), Issa Kikasi, Benson Mwita, Khalil Rehmtullah, Riziki Kiseto, Rashida Amri, Abdulkadir Dossaji, Athumani Kakonzi, Abhik Patwa, Hasnain Damji, Kassim Nassoro, Rishen Patel, Kelvin Nasibu, Shaheed Dhanani; Coach - Zully Rehmtullah.

By Tony Munro

Tanzania have won two, drawn one and lost one of the opening four games of the current tour of the United Kingdom.

The tourists scored 167 for 8 in 40 overs in their first innings on tour before an Indian Gymkhana outfit containing full-time players from Dehli replied with 168 for 3 in 36 overs.

In the second game, Birmingham Civil Service were all out for 67 before rain halted proceedings after Tanzania were 11 for 1 from two overs. The match was abandoned when no further play was possible.

The visitors secured their first win on tour when West Harrow CC was removed for 111, and Tanzania needed just 22 overs to score 112 with seven wickets remaining. It was a three wicket win in the fourth game against Watford Town CC when Tanzania overtook the home team's 146 for 8.

The pitches back home in Dar Es Salaam are normally flat and docile, making Tanzania's batting performance commendable.

By Tony Munro

Tanzania are currently touring England for a 12-day trip to prepare for the ICC World Cricket League Division 4 tournament, which they are hosting in October. The team will play matches against Indian Gymkhana (London), Birmingham Civil Service, West Harrow CC, Watford CC, Amersham CC (all north west of London), Rajput Cricket Association, Julian Woods Academy and Birmingham West Indians possibly the MCC.

Most of the squad, captained by left-arm medium pacer Hamisi Abdallah, are under 24 and have come through the Tanzania Cricket Association's development programme.

The tour was preceded by a training camp and a lengthy domestic season, where Aga Khan Cricket Club (captained by off-spinner Riziki Kiseto) won the Mwalimu Nyerere A League.

Tanzania is among six teams will compete in Divison 4, in Dar Es Salaam, from October 4 to 11. Afghanistan, Fiji, Hong Kong, Italy and Jersey the others.

Tanzania could host the first African Under-15 tournament early next year, said the Tanzania Cricket Association (TCA). Their secretary-general Tom Mhinzi said they had been asked by the African Cricket Association (ACA) to host it, pending official confirmation.

"TCA is now working on the ACA's proposals to see how best we can manage, and whether or not we have enough time to handle such an international show," Mhinzi told The Citizen newspaper.

Other possible hosts are South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Namibia.

Emmanuel Nakaana’s 58 guided Uganda to a ten-wicket win over Rwanda in the opening round of the ICC East Africa Under-17 tournament. In the day’s other game, Kenya thrashed defending champions Tanzania by 100 runs.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Although the ICC draws considerable flak on many fronts, it is quietly committed to promoting the game in as many countries as possible, and it does that by means of a myriad of competitions and initiatives. Most do not warrant much media attention, but they are there and they work.

Until now, the gripe of the smaller countries, and especially those bubbling just underneath the top flight, has been about the inequality of the way in which the game is financed. That was never more apparent than when it came to earnings from last year's World Cup.

Ireland got a flat fee of US$125,000 a year for four years for taking part, and on top of that they received another $50,000 for reaching the Super Eights. However, because of the extra costs involved in their progression, not least because their players are not professional cricketers and their absences from their full-time jobs had to be underwritten, Ireland's success actually left the board out of pocket.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, turned up, tied with Ireland and never threatened to progress after being thumped by Pakistan and West Indies. For those three matches, Zimbabwe Cricket received US$11 million, their share of the pot as a Full Member.

The top six Associates receive no more than US$500,000 a year - some substantially less - to fund their entire operations. Out of that they have to pay all their cricketing and administration costs. Only those with a low cost of living, such as Kenya, can hope to maintain a professional squad on that kind of money.

The gulf between the haves and have-nots is further widened by the limited sums Associates can earn from sponsorship and media contracts. Zimbabwe can exploit home series against, say, India to carve out lucrative TV deals worth millions, and on the back of that, attract shirt- and other corporate sponsorship. As highlighted by Scotland's failure to secure any TV deal for their forthcoming ODI against England, the Associates struggle to get such income streams.

The new deals will provide a substantial increase for Associates, especially for the countries who are pressing for space at the top table. Until now the share has been roughly equal, rewarding Netherlands and Kenya on par with Thailand and Fiji. The new system will see more demarcation between the top Associates and the rest.

The leading ten could earn as much as US$1.5 million a year from 2009. There will then be an onus on them to professionalise their administrations, but several of them are already well down that route. They will also be more accountable - the ICC does not want a repeat of the mess that came following a spike in Kenya's funding earlier in the decade.

The second-string Associates will also get more - around US$160,000 as a base figure - but then again the demands on them are less. Even Affiliates will receive US$15,000, with the opportunity for more should they make a good enough case. There will also be more cash in the pot for participating and hosting competitions.

There have never been more opportunities for development outside the Full Member countries, but there remain some nagging worries.

The main one is how to bridge the gap between semi and full-blown professionalism. Almost all the Associates rely on dedicated amateurs, both on and off the field. As the number of ICC competitions has increased - and they have to be welcomed - the pressure has begun to tell. Scotland and Ireland particularly have already found players cannot meet all their commitments, and even the increased income will not allow them to employ a full-time squad.

"So much of putting players on full-time retainers depends on how many fixtures we can command," Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive, said. "At the moment, all we can promise the squad in 2009 is a World Cup qualifying campaign, eight FP Trophy matches, an England game, and probably some Intercontinental Cup matches. Of course, we hope to have more, but can't be sure at the moment.

"Our top players are already plying their trade in county cricket, while others have full-time jobs which they may not wish to give up. The actual number of players that the coach will want to put on a full-time contract, or else the number that even want to have one, may not be that many."

The other quandary is how to get them fixtures. Kenya, widely regarded as the leading Associate, have found it almost impossible to get Full Member countries to visit or host them. As a result they invariably play other Associates. Good for the win-loss ratio, not so clever in providing the kind of experience that no amount of money can buy.

These issues will need to be addressed, but for now the future has never looked so promising beyond the Test world.

From 8th to 11th Dec 2007 Cricket Kenya hosted the U15 boys and women’s open tournament in Nairobi, under the umbrella of Africa Cricket Association (ACA). The Tanzanian U15 boys team under the Development coach Riziki Kiseto, performed well, in spite of losing all their games. The big physical builds of the Ugandan, Kenyan and Rwandese U15 players over shadowed the tiny Tanzanian players forcing them to play their games in a shell.

It was indeed a good experience for all the East African youths that participated in this tournament who also got the opportunity to make new friends from the neighbouring countries through the game of cricket at a tender age.

The Tanzanian women’s team under the Development coach Hamisi Abadalla, became runners up in the women’s category comprising of teams from Uganda, Tanzania and the host Kenya. Tanzania women’s team failed to defend its championship title for the seventh consecutive year. This was the first time after six years that the Ugandan side managed to win over the Tanzania.

DOMESTIC LEAGUE

Aga Khan and Academy boys qualified for the finals of the DRCC league after their win against Ekta and Anadil Burhani in the Semi finals. The finals played on the 11/11/07, was a very exciting game. Aga Khan won the toss and decided to bat scoring 206 / 9 in the 50 allotted over. In defending their score Aga Khan managed to take all the main wickets early giving them hope of winning the finals. It was Hamisi Abdalla the skipper of the academy boys who played a well controlled inning to deny Aga Khan Victory scoring 96 runs.

The annually played Mwalimu Nyerere Cup took off immediately after the completion of the DRCC league. Four teams qualified for the semi finals. Aga Khan was on top of the table with Ekta academy boys and Dar Gymkhana all on equal points. Aga Khan and Academy Boys once again qualified to meet in the finals of the Mwalimu Nyerere Cup. The finals ended in a tie with Aga Khan winning the finals on technical grounds of their head on win in the earlier round robin.

Other individual awards were presented to the following:

1. Bhavesh Govind best batter trophy

2. Khalil Rehemtulla best bowler trophy

3. Kassimu Nassoro best all rounder.

In the ‘B’ division Dar International played against Union club in the finals of the Mwalimu Nyerere Cup. Dar International won the toss and elected to bat scoring 168/9 in the 30 allotted over game and this time did manage to defend their score in a tight game by restricting union club for 160 all out in 28 over to clinch the winner’s trophy.

Administration

The Association held its AGM on the 16th Dec 2007. Chairman’s report and financial reports were adopted by members. A Constitutional amendment for the financial year to end on 31 Dec was unanimously approved by all members present.

Fund Raising
Dar es salaam International Club and the Dik Diks under the leadership of Tony Brennan organized a fund raising game for the development of Cricket in Tanzania. South Africa v/s Rest of the world was played on the 17th Nov 2007 by player comprising from expatriate community working in Tanzania.

A sum of USD $500/- and Tshs 382,000/- were raised and donated to TCA for the development of the game. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat scoring 187 runs in the 30 allotted over game. In reply the rest of the world team made 191 in 29.2 over to win the game. The event was very interesting with both sides displaying some good strokes in batting.

Development
The development committee arranged a two week holiday camp for juniors from the 16th to 31st Dec 2007. This junior holiday camp was designed to prepare the youths for the junior structured league scheduled to commence in Jan 2008.

On 25th Jan a structured junior league took off for the first time in Dar es salaam with eight teams participating in two groups in a twenty 20 format. The event was played with very competitive spirit and discipline. The youths displayed their talents in all the departments of the game making the event every exciting with good team and individual scores. Schools combine team and Al Madresa qualified for the finals of this event. Schools combine won the toss and elected to bat scoring 92/7 in 20 allotted over. In defending the score the schools combine restricted Al Madresa for 62 /10 in 16 over to clinch the junior league 2008 trophy.

Individual trophies were awarded to various participants. Master Kake Singh of schools combine scored a total of 48 runs took 7 wickets of three games was awarded the all rounder trophy, Master Micheal Kefa of schools combine scoring a total of 91 runs for his team of three games with HS 61* received the best batter award, Master savastra Patel of Indian School received the best bowler award for taking 6 wickets for his team and Master Oska Manyanya of Victoria schools settling for the best fielder award for taking 5 catches.

This first appeared in a recent ICC Development newsletter

Tanzania is considering sending a squad to the UK, under the watchful eye of the MCC in London.

The objective of the UK tour is to gauge the team and prepare for the International Cricket Council's World cricket league for division four to be held between August and September in a country to be named later. MCC last year paid a visit to some African countries that included Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar where they played a couple of matches against local sides.

Other planned trials tour include playing against Kenya at a date and venue to be named later after communicating with the Cricket Kenya officials. The trials and UK tour is aimed at giving the team exposure and look forward to staging a qualifier campaign to feature in the 2011 World Cup to be jointly staged by India, Pakistant and Sri Lanka.

Read the full story at AllAfrica.

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

Click here for the full story.

Botswana produced the shock of the Africa Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers when they Uganda by 27 runs to reach the semi-finals in Benoni on Monday.

Botswana's unexpected victory eliminated Tanzania from the semi-final on net run-rate after the duo along with Uganda ended up at four points each from three matches. In Wednesday's semi-finals, Uganda meets Namibia while Kenya faces Botswana. Kenya topped Pool One after conjuring up a four-wicket victory over Zambia while Namibia finished second after defeating Ghana by 172 runs, courtesy of an unbeaten century by Sean Silver.

In the Botswana-Uganda match, Botswana scored 192 for 8 after being put into bat with contributions from Karan Kapoor (54) and Nadeem Tajbhay (36) while Emmanuel Nakaana bagged 3 for 45. In turn, Uganda was dismissed for 165 in 44 overs after losing their last seven wickets for 54.

Tanzania, in their last match, carved out a 153-run victory over Nigeria. Athumani Kakonzi (70) and Seif Abdul (68) put on 123 for the second wicket to set the platform for Tanzania's 296 in 49.5 overs. Nigeria, in its target chase, were bowled out for 143.

Silver scored 101 to inspire Namibia to a 172-run victory over Ghana and featured in a 117-run second wicket partnership with Tiaan Louw (62) as Namibia scored 287 for 6. Ghana were dismissed for 115 with Elandre Oosthuizen taking 4 for 39 and Louis Petrus van der Westhuizen claiming 3 for 13.

Spinners Rakep Patel and Rohit Vekaria shared six wickets to help Kenya beat Zamibia by four wickets. Patel took 3 for 16 and Vekaria bagged 3 for 17 as Zambia were spun out for 152. Kenya achieved victory in 34.1 overs for the loss of six wickets.

The winner of the Africa Under-19 Qualifiers join Papua New Guinea (from the East Asia-Pacific Region), Ireland (from the Europe Region) and Bermuda (from the Americas Region), the ICC's 10 Full Members and hosts Malaysia at the 16-team U-19 World Cup from February 17 to March 2 2008 in Malaysia.

Eight of cricket’s emerging nations will be hoping to take one step towards qualification for the 2011 World Cup when the World Cricket League Division 3 gets underway this Sunday (May 27) in Darwin.

The top two teams from this event will join UAE, Namibia, Denmark and Oman
in Windhoek, Namibia at the ICC World Cricket League Division 2 November. The top four teams from the event in Namibia will automatically qualify for the ICC World Cup Qualifier in the UAE in 2009, while the two remaining teams will have a second chance to qualify for the UAE tournament at the World Cricket League Division 3 in early 2009.

Click here for the full team-by-team preview.

Fast bowler Peter Ongondo headed a Nairobi Province Cricket Association NPCA) Select side which arrived in Dar es Salaam for a four one-dayers against the Tanzanian national side.

"Most of our players are under-19 and they need an experienced person like Ongondo to motivate them," David Asiji, one of the team’s coaches, said.

Zully Rehemtulla, the Tanzania Cricket Association chairman, explained the matches were preparation for the World Division III Cricket League in Australia which starts at the end of the month.

NPCA squad Peter Ongondo, Nelson Odhiambo, Moses Otieno, Lawrence Okoth, Dominic Wesonga, Francis Otieno, Shashanka Maheshwari, Peter Kituku, David Maina, Ken Migai, Abdul Wajmi, Benjamin Oluga, Pritesh Limbachia, Keval Patel, Shem Ng’oche, Ritin Limbani.

Tanzania are gearing up for a series of friendlies against Kenya in preparation for division three of the World Cricket League which will be held in Australia, in June.

Zully Rehemtullah, the Tanzania Cricket Association’s chairman, told The Kenya Times that he expected his side to arrive on May 10.

More details at their website.

Tanzania’s national cricket team are off to India for a 20-day training spell to prepare for the ICC’s World Cricket League Division Three which will take place in Australia in May.

It won't get many column inches in the mainstream cricket press, but the World Cricket League, which started in Nairobi yesterday and continues into next week, features the best of the rest, the six sides just under the ten Test-playing countries. For the two finalists, the rewards are bountiful - a place among the big boys in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September, along with $250,000. For countries used to surviving on annual handouts from the ICC of less than $200,000, that's big money.

With the exception of Bermuda, cricket is not a mainstream sport in any of the participants. And yet it survives, and in some instances thrives, despite the lack of attention and a relatively small number of enthusiasts.

The ICC, who do sterling work in supporting the game's second and third tiers, will rightly use the event to highlight that cricket is not just about the Indians and Australias of the world.

But there remains a nagging worry. The ICC boasts that the game is spreading across the world. But is that right? Is it taking root or is it surviving because more people from its hotbed - south-east Asia - are emigrating and keeping it alive for the duration of their careers?

In last year's Wisden Almanack, Matthew Engel raised this very issue. "Overwhelmingly, the game in non-traditional countries is played by expatriates, mostly South Asian. Journalists were kidded into believing that cricket was about to burst on China, on the basis of some warm comments by civil servants and a couple of coaching courses. I have seen not one shred of evidence to back this up. Are the kids playing with tapeballs on the streets of Shanghai? Are they heck!"

Take Canada. Of the squad in Nairobi at the moment, only three were born in the country, and two of those are over 35. Of the rest, five come from the Caribbean, four from India and each from Pakistan and Uganda. Whereas other Associates have a smattering of expats, Canada are utterly reliant on them.

Engel's comment attracted fierce criticism from those who either argued that England had more than their share of "imports" or that the game only spread in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Caribbean through expats playing it in the first place.

The worry in some countries is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants

With regards to England, yes there have been quite a few non English-born players who have been picked for the side, but the game still has a massive stronghold in the country. The selection has been more about improving a solid side. And as for the ex-pats argument? Well, yes, but that's the crucial point. In the regions flagged the game was brought in but it was then embraced by the indigenous population and taken on as their own. This is exemplified no better than in CLR James's seminal work, Beyond A Boundary.

The worry in some countries - and again I come back to Canada - is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants. Canada's cricket heritage is rich but there is little sign that it has been built on. This is best underlined by the selection of former West Indies international Anderson Cummins. Forty years old and without a major match to his name since 1995-96, he made his debut in Mombasa last week. What message does that send out about the strength in depth of cricket in Canada?

It's not just Canada. Look at the USA, whose 2004 Champions Trophy side was a collection of ageing expats whose performances verged on the disgraceful. And the UAE, which is almost entirely dependant on its ex-pat workforce to keep the game alive.

Cricket's expansion should not be about filling teams with expats and expecting the locals to get excited about it. The only way cricket can gain a foothold in emerging countries is by actually getting the indigenous population to embrace the game, and two excellent examples where this is happening are Nepal and Uganda.

Anderson Cummins of Barbados, West Inbies ... and now Canada © Eddie Norfolk

Does it matter? Yes, because as the ICC looks to develop the game in as many places as possible, that means the financial cake has to be cut in ever thinner slices. The ICC needs to concentrate on a smaller number of countries where the chances of the game taking off. It is invidious that Uganda gets the same basic allowance as Belgium.

Cricket is in trouble in its traditional homes in Africa - Zimbabwe are hell-bent on destruction and South Africa seems to be falling out of love with the game. So efforts should be made in Uganda . And in Asia, which everyone accepts is the game's stronghold, a side like Nepal should really be given the leg up. It's about targeting rather than a scattergun approach.

In fairness to the ICC, they have a tough time and a lot of countries scrambling for a share of the spoils. It's about weeding out the weak and really looking to grow the game in areas where it has the best chance of taking root. It's an almost impossible ask. Look at the repeated failure of American Football to crack Europe ... and if football itself still battles for acceptance outside expats and schools in the USA, then the size of the ICC's task becomes clear.

Of course expats have a key role to play in expansion. But if the game is basically played by them, is it the game spreading or is it more about diehards clinging to the traditions of their homelands? In the UK there are baseball and American football sides, but they are almost all expat Americans and so few would seriously claim the games have taken hold. However, basketball and ice hockey are widely played by locals, boosted by some imported players and expats, and, crucially, the national side can stand on its own two feet. That's the difference.

While most attention outside the Test world centres on the World Cricket League which gets underway next Monday (January 29), two of the sides providing opposition in warm-up matches will be taking those games far more seriously.

Uganda and Tanzania have been brought in by the tournament organisers to provide opposition for the six countries in the WCL, but both will be looking to impress. Uganda have been talked up by many in the last year, but they suffered heavy defeats when Kenya toured there at the end of last year.

"Everybody is in good frame of mind,” former Uganda Under-19 captain Hamza Saleh told The Monitor. “We have played with these guys (Tanzanians) in different age group events before and we will handle them cautiously."

The countdown for the 2009 women's World Cup begins this Friday when four African countries will assemble in Nairobi, Kenya for the start of the World Cup regional qualifiers.

Joining the host nation Kenya will be Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Uganda and the one-day competition will be played in a simple round-robin format, with the winner heading to the next qualifying stage, a tournament in Pakistan at the end of next year. Eight teams will vie for two spots at the 2009 World Cup in Australia.

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Tanzania has been confirmed the host of this year’s World Cup qualifying series for the Africa region, which gets underway in August in Dar es Salaam.

Tanzania Cricket Association (TCA), Chairman Zully Rehemtulah said on Saturday that their confirmation follows an assessment they had carried out in relation to the standard of the pitch.

He said the tournament would be held at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) grounds, a decision that has been reached after a series of negotiations between TCA and UDSM officials.

Rehemtulah who is also the Cricket instructor, said lack of an acceptable pitch worried them a lot.

He said three grounds that were earmarked for the tournament Dar es Salaam Gymkhana, Annadir Burhani and Leaders’ could not be secured because of reasons beyond their control.

“However, we have been struggling to get the University of Dar es Salaam grounds and luckily we have managed, we are now going to host the tournament,” he said confidently.