T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier

The ICC T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier tournament serves as part of the qualification process for the 2026 T20 World Cup and features four groups. Only the top two sides in each group will advance to compete for a place in the Men’s T20 World Cup Regional Final.

Zimbabwe made history on 23 November by posting the highest T20 score ever against Gambia at an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup sub-regional Africa Qualifier Group B qualifying match on November 23, 2024. They managed an unprecedented score of 344/4 in their match up as seen in T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier.

Group A

Botswana will begin their campaign in Group A of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier against Mozambique with an exciting match on September 11th. This qualifiers tournament serves as part of their journey towards qualifying for 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup; only the top two teams advance to global qualifiers next year.

Zimbabwe National Cricket Team have entered this tournament as the top-ranked team on the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20 Team Rankings, and will look to start their campaign off strongly. Led by Sian Gordon and boasting an experienced squad that features Fatuma Kibasu (their leading run scorer in T20I cricket).

Namibia will enter this tournament as one of the favorites, even without playing competitive cricket since their 2018 Kwibuka T20 tournament runners-up finish. Split into two groups (Botswana, Eswatini, Rwanda and Mozambique in Group A; Cameroon Namibia Sierra Leone Tanzania in Group B), their winners advancing to an African regional final before Kenya and Nigeria compete in an ICC Women’s T20 World Championship Qualifier 2026 Qualifier Qualifier Qualifier; plus top two sides from this regional final will also qualify for inclusion into their respective World Cup Qualifier Qualifier Qualifier 2026 subregional qualifier in 2026 T20 World Cup Qualifier Qualifier!

Group B

The 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier was held as part of its qualification process, featuring eight groups. The top two sides from each group advanced to the regional final alongside Namibia and Uganda who received byes due to their performance at their previous subregional qualifier tournament.

Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Seychelles and Gambia comprise Group B at this tournament. All six teams in this group have an ICC T20I rankings ranking below 50th with Kenya currently topping this chart.

Henriette Ishimwe was an integral member of Rwanda’s Kwibuka T20 tournament squad, and will look to replicate that form at this competition as well. A proven wicket-taker with an economy rate of 3.75, she is known for bowling effectively in difficult circumstances and often takes charge when needed.

Fatuma Kibasu leads Tanzania in runs scored and could serve as one of their key batting contributions as one of only a few centurions. She will be joined by experienced players such as Hudaa Omary, Mwanaidi Ammy, Zinaida Jeremiah, Linda Justine and Perice Kamunya – they hope to build on their impressive showing from Kwibuka T20 tournament as they face both Zimbabwe and Rwanda with equal stride in this competition.

Group C

Seven teams competing in Group C of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier hope to secure one of two spots available in 2024 event. Previously-placed sides at previous edition will automatically qualify, along with next highest ranked T20I team.

The top two sides in each group will advance to a regional final qualifier tournament, with its winners and runners-up qualifying directly for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Namibia and Uganda – who both previously took part – were granted exemption from sub-regional qualifiers.

Kenya got off to an impressive World Cup qualification start when they overwhelmed Seychelles 4-0 on Tuesday in their first of five matches, thanks to goals scored by Brian Mandela, Dennis Oliech and Titus Mulama ensuring Harambee Stars advanced 7-0 overall on aggregate.

Tunisia have struggled to accumulate points thus far in their group campaign, losing all three opening games while Mauretania and Chad have managed to take only one victory out of four matches each. Only Morocco have shown some form, going unbeaten through four matches under Sarfraz Ahmed so far and looking to build on such an impressive start. Check out Wisden Cricket YouTube channel for post-match analysis, player interviews and more!

Group D

England took an important step toward qualifying for the Super Eights of the 2024 T20 World Cup by defeating Pakistan on Sunday in Group D match. England were in danger of failing to advance after their opening match loss against Namibia; but Carlos Brathwaite’s heroics propelled them over the line.

South Africa remain in contention for inclusion in the Super 8, and are in pole position after taking maximum points from their opening three matches. Following some initial stumbles, however, they have found their groove and secured victories against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Afghanistan have made an impressive start to their tournament and are the only team in Group D with a positive net run rate. Their win against Papua New Guinea marked their third straight success, taking them level with West Indies on six points.

Papua New Guinea and Uganda have both been eliminated from competition. PNG lost to Afghanistan for their fourth straight loss and will end their tournament without a victory; Uganda tied on points with Australia and Scotland but could not qualify due to poor net run rate; Oman suffered four consecutive defeats, finishing below both Australia and Scotland on their respective leader boards.