NAIROBI, Kenya, April 17 – The national women’s cricket team captain Sharon Juma expects a fiery match against their immediate East African neighbours Uganda when the two nations meet at the Victoria Series at the Lugogo Cricket Oval in Kampala, Uganda.

While insisting there are no top favourites among the five teams competing in the week-long tournament, Juma said the tie against Uganda will be extra spicy because of the proximity of the two countries.

“We want to get into the games not thinking so much about our opponents but to play good cricket and showcase our skills and talent. Definitely, a game that is going to be a bit exciting is our game against Uganda because it is a derby match,” Juma said.

The two teams last met in December last year during the final of the Quadrangular T20 Series in Nairobi where Uganda emerged triumphant courtesy of a 22 run-win.

At the ‘pearl of Africa’, the two sides will clash on Saturday in what will be their respective last matches in round-robin series.

Kenya bowl off their campaign on Tuesday morning against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the Ugandans battle Rwanda in the afternoon.

The Kenyans have been in training in the past week and Juma says they are positive and raring to go for glory.

“The team is very positive…we are actually very excited because we want to see what we can do as a team that has changed drastically. We definitely want to see the girls who have never played before showcasing their skills,” she said.

The Quadrangular Series, which brought together the four East African nations as well as Qatar, was a learning curve for Kenya and Juma says they will be keen to apply the lessons learned from December.

“In December, since we were hosting, we were definitely under some bit of pressure. Coming to Uganda, the pressure is there…yeah…but it is less compared to playing at home. The way we batted and fielded, we learnt a few things that put us behind,” she explained.

From a personal perspective, Juma will be wearing the ‘armband’ for the first time and admitted she feels a little bit of pressure.

Nonetheless, she is excited and privileged to hold such an esteemed position.

“It is a bit of pressure because the team has really changed but we want to remain positive. The goal is to unite the team and develop a bond such that I just forget am the captain and showcase my skills on the pitch,” she concluded.