The Malawi women's national cricket team opened their 2026 Kwibuka T20 Tournament campaign with a 52-run defeat to Nigeria at the Gahanga 2 Cricket Oval in Kigali, Rwanda on Wednesday, according to Punch Newspapers. Malawi won the toss and elected to bowl first, restricting the Nigerian Female Yellow Greens to a total of 98 for 8 in their allotted 20 overs. Lucky Malino led the Malawian bowling attack by taking four wickets to keep the scoring in check, while Jessica Bieni anchored the Nigerian innings with an unbeaten 25 runs, The Nation Newspaper reports.
Despite a strong initial bowling performance, Malawi struggled during their run chase and was dismissed for just 46 runs in 10.3 overs, according to THISDAYLIVE. Nigerian bowler Shola Adekunle claimed three wickets for 15 runs to earn Player of the Match honors, and captain Favour Eseigbe quickly finished the contest by taking two wickets in three deliveries without conceding a single run. The result gave Nigeria a comprehensive opening victory in the multi-nation memorial tournament, Punch Newspapers reports.