Cheema lights up Lugogo tournament

KAMPALA.

Prior to start of the ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament, Canada coach Henry Osinde promised his team would win over the Ugandan crowd.

Although the crowd has kept to loyal to Uganda, moving with the team from Lugogo to Entebbe plus Kyambogo and back to Lugogo today, there is no doubt that Rizwan Cheema, the sixth in their batting order, is a name we will not forget here for some time. Or at least his number 99 jersey.

On Tuesday, the right-hand batsman scored 91 runs off 44 balls thereby causing most of the damage as Uganda lost to Canada by 66 runs.

Canada had elected to bat after play had been delayed for over two hours due to rain. They indeed started fine but Henry Ssenyondo deliveries managed to ignite an alarm as Canada then at 74-1 lost three wickets in four balls, including the run-out of captain Nitish Kumar for 43.

Cheema hit 10 sixes and three fours to steady the Canadian ship when he walked in the 29th over at 105-5 although Uganda was guilty of dropping him three times along the way before Shahzad Ukani eventually caught him at deep square leg.

“I felt bad that I didn’t get the 100,” Cheema revealed, to show he is clearly a man on a mission. He even went on to declare; “now I want to go on and become the player of the series.”

On Wednesday, he was on course for another batting master-class as he scored 42 runs off 25 balls but Canada’s attacking scores were hugely a concerted effort as two other teammates passed 40 including teenage opener Bhavindu Adhihetty with 44 runs. However, captain Kumar felt his side could have let Oman back into the game given the way they leaked runs in the afternoon heat.

“We need to work on our bowling and fielding because we let them punish us in some areas. It was a tough game,” he said.
Cheema instead made it happen again and was rightly named Man of Match for a second straight time after picking two wickets in the 27th over to show he can equally be useful with the ball.

His victims were Naseem Khushi – gone for 22 – and Amir Ali trapped leg before wicket after scoring just one run to make it 148-7. Oman settled for 191.

“He is an important asset to our side. When he plays well like that, he is dangerous and his experience gives us the stability we need.

“Off the pitch he is calm and all the boys enjoy having him around,” Kumar said. Certainly we all have loved to watch the Pakistani-born cricketer who to moved to Canada in the early 2000s

CHEEMA FACTFILE
Born: Aug 15, 1978
Birth Place: Pakistan
Role: Batsman
Batting Style: Right Handed
Bowling Style: Right-arm medium