Cricket: Runsewe stars as Yellow Greens level Kenya series

Yellow Greens wicketkeeper Sulaimon Runsewe was awarded Player of the Match as Nigeria delivered a stellar performance to defeat Kenya by 14 runs in the fourth T20 match, levelling the ongoing seven-match bilateral series at 2-2 on Tuesday, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

The men’s senior national team are on a tour of Kenya, taking on the Simbas in five T20 games and two ODI matches, with the series climaxing on Saturday, July 20.

Batting first, the Yellow Greens posted a competitive total of 158 runs for the loss of five wickets. Runsewe was drafted into the opening pair with Selim Salau, and both players laid a solid foundation with a remarkable partnership of 110 runs.

Runsewe led the charge with a brilliant 60 runs off 51 balls, while Salau contributed a valuable 42 runs off 37 balls before being bowled.

In the second innings, Nigeria’s bowlers put up a disciplined performance to restrict Kenya to 144 runs for the loss of eight wickets in their 20 overs.

Taiwo Mohammed was exceptional, bowling four overs and conceding just 15 runs while taking two wickets. Chiemelie Udekwe also impressed with figures of four overs, 28 runs, and two wickets.

Captain Sylvester Okpe chipped in with two wickets for 19 runs in his two overs, while Isaac Okpe and Joshua Asia took a wicket each, conceding 28 and 27 runs, respectively, in their four-over spells.

After losing the first two games of the series, the Yellow Greens bounced back with their first victory on Monday, beating their hosts by three wickets to make the series 2-1 before levelling it with another remarkable win on Tuesday.

The last T20 game between both countries in the series will be played on Wednesday (today), and the ODI formats will follow in the final three days.