Felix Musana, the chairman and founder of Soroti Cricket Academy (SCA) is hoping the academy’s tour of Rwanda will go a long way in launching his girls’ careers internationally.
The academy under their U17 section is scheduled for a five-day (January 15-19) visit of Rwanda. 14 youngsters in that regard will be the center of attention in Kigali during that period as they gauge their skill set against the Rwandese U17 girls team.
SCA is a hub on the rise! It prides itself as the academy that’s kept feeding the national women’s team, the Victoria Pearls with quality players since it’s inception in 2014.
Strategic partnership
Little wonder, it has partnered with Rwanda, one of the fast and rising nations in the region in as far as women’s cricket is concerned.
Rwanda has taken the bull by it’s horns! They most recently in January 2023 participated at the inaugural U19 Women’s T20 World Cup that was hosted by South Africa. They went as far as the Super 6 stage, at the expense of Zimbabwe and Scotland among other nations.
In as far as individual players are concerned, Rwanda’s sensation, all-rounder Henrietta Ishimwe has become a household name.
She often puts in the shade in tournaments Rwanda takes part in, but the 20-year-old’s peak in success thus far, was in 2022 when she was recruited to play at the inaugural Fair Break Invitational T20 in Dubai, UAE where she played for the Barmy Army team.
The Fair Break Invitational is an ICC sanctioned event that brings together some of the very best across the World. In Dubai, Ishimwe was in the company of World Cup winners.
She faced off against Australian all-rounder Nicola Jane Carey and Danielle Nicole Wyatt from England, both World Cup winners with their countries.
Such progress inspires Musana! He is hoping his girls can go on to make such strides.
Felix Musana’s expectations
“The purpose of this tour is to provide our players with some international experience at an early stage,” Musana told this website.
“We want to experience different cultures, but also network and connect with different players. Enhance the development of our skills, assess our weaknesses and strengths, as well as build mental toughness and resilience”.
“We held something similar in 2018 against the same country. Most of their (Rwanda) girls that participated in that tournament have had their careers take off. We hope we can emulate that and more.”
Victoria Pearls opening bowler Irene Alumo is a product of SCA. She alongside her national team teammate, opening batter Proscovia Alako were invited to take part at last year’s Fair Break in the USA, but the tournament was postponed.
Given their connection to the academy, it is fair to say that it has already sniffed the headway that Musana is aiming at.
Courtesy Photos
