THE national women’s basketball team will make their maiden appearance at the 2013 Afro-Basket Women’s Championships in September after excelling at the Zone VI qualifiers at the Stade Desportivo in Maputo on Tuesday.
REPORT BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
Zimbabwe previously qualified for the All Africa Games, but were yet to make the grade for the Afro-Basket Women’s Championships which will be hosted by Mozambique.
The Sikhumbuzo Ndlovu-coached side lived up to their billing, registering two wins over Botswana to seal their qualification.
The team’s job was made easier as regional powerhouses Angola and Mozambique did not take part in the qualifiers.
Mozambique qualified as the hosts, while Angola were given a bye by virtue of being the defending champions.
Other southern African countries such as South Africa, Zambia, Seychelles, Swaziland, Namibia, Zambia, Malawi and Lesotho did not turn up for the tournament which left Botswana as Zimbabwe’s sole challenge for a spot at the continental championships.
The two teams played against each other in two matches with Zimbabwe comfortably winning the first match 67-30 before finishing off their neighbours 94-34 in their second match.
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Zimbabwe have qualified for the All-Africa Games on three previous occasions, although they only met the qualifying criteria during the last edition in Mozambique in 2011. On the other two occasions, at the 2007 games in Algeria, they qualified courtesy of a wild card entry, while at the 1995 All Africa Games they qualified by virtue of being the host nation.
In an interview with NewsDay Sport yesterday, Basketball Union of Zimbabwe president Addison Chiware praised the women’s team for their exploits.
“The women’s team have made history and made us proud by qualifying for the Afro-Basket Championships for the first time. We are delighted because it’s a sign that our teams are capable of competing at the highest level. We will make sure that the team gets the ideal preparations before the tournament by organising friendlies and ensuring that they go into camp on time,” said Chiware.
