Uganda’s Cricket Cranes head to Abuja for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Sub-Regional Qualifier C with a changing squad, fresh talent and a familiar ambition. Coach Steve Tikolo wants a positive mindset, captain Riazat Ali Shah expects Uganda to play to their standard, while returning batter Robinson Obuya insists that no tournament is too small to deserve the same level of commitment.

Uganda’s Cricket Cranes know what it feels like to be at the T20 World Cup. They also know that getting there is one thing and staying on the road to another appearance is an entirely different ball game.

After making history by qualifying for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Uganda missed out on the 2026 edition and must now begin another journey from the sub-regional stage. It is not necessarily the route they would have chosen, but it is the one standing between them and another opportunity to compete on the biggest stage.

As the team prepares for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Sub-Regional Qualifier C in Abuja, Nigeria, three voices offer a glimpse into the mood within the camp: head Coach Steve Tikolo, Captain Riazat Ali Shah and returning top-order batter Robinson Obuya.

Tikolo wants his players to believe they can win every game. Shah wants the Cranes to demonstrate why they are the highest-ranked side in the competition.

Obuya, meanwhile, is not interested in whether the tournament is considered big or small. For him, the mindset stays the same. And perhaps that is exactly what Uganda need as they try to find their way back to the Africa Regional Final.

For Steve Tikolo, the qualifying campaign begins in the mind long before the first ball is bowled. The Cricket Cranes head coach wants his players to approach every match believing they can win it, regardless of the opposition or the stage of the tournament.

“Obviously, a positive mentality,” Tikolo said when asked what mindset the team must take into the competition. “For me, every game we play, I would want the players to go into that game with a positive mentality that we are going to win the game.”

It sounds straightforward, but tournament cricket can quickly test even the most confident teams. A few early wickets, an expensive over or an unexpected fight from an opponent can change the mood of a match.

Tikolo’s message is that Uganda must remain positive and focused on performing for the team, rather than allowing circumstances to dictate their confidence.

The coach also has another important task on his hands: managing a team that has changed considerably since its appearance at the 2024 T20 World Cup. Tikolo estimates that five or six players from that squad have since moved on or retired. That has created room for new faces, including youngsters who have progressed from the under-19 ranks into the senior national setup.

Rather than viewing those changes as a problem, the coach sees an opportunity to strengthen Uganda’s future. “They bring a lot of skills and talent. Obviously, experience will come as they go by, but the intention is also to start bringing in new players, younger players,” he explained.

It is an important part of building a sustainable national team. The Cranes cannot depend on the same group indefinitely; they need younger players to learn from the experienced members and gradually become dependable performers themselves.

Abuja could therefore become more than a qualification assignment for some of the newcomers. It is a chance to show that they can handle senior international cricket and contribute when Uganda need them.

One player Tikolo is particularly keen for people to watch is young bowler Enock Kasaija. “He is an exciting young bowler. People must watch the space in terms of Enock Kasaija,” Tikolo said, expressing confidence in the youngster’s potential to contribute to Uganda both now and in the future.

Uganda’s preparation has not been entirely smooth, with injuries affecting some of the available options. All-rounder Dinesh Nakrani and opening bowler Cosmas Kyewuta remain injured and are undergoing rehabilitation. Juma Miyaji, meanwhile, returned from the Zimbabwe outing with what Tikolo described as a niggle.

With Kyewuta unavailable and Miyaji needing appropriate management, questions naturally arise about whether Uganda have enough bowling firepower for a five-match campaign. Tikolo, however, is not pressing the panic button. “No, I am not worried. I know Juma will do well for us,” he said.

The coach acknowledged that players sometimes have to manage minor physical setbacks, provided they are properly looked after by the technical team. His confidence in Miyaji suggests that he believes the available group can get the job done.

Still, the Cranes will need contributions from more than one or two individuals. A tournament with five matches in a short period demands a bowling unit capable of adapting to different situations and sharing the workload.

The absence of Nakrani also means Uganda must find ways to cover his all-round contribution, while the team will be without left-arm spinner Matthew Musinguzi because of academic commitments.

For Tikolo, the immediate priority remains clear: trust the squad, prepare properly and take each game with a positive mentality.

Uganda’s return to the sub-regional stage is not something the captain Riazat Ali Shah considers a positive development in itself. Having experienced the journey to the World Cup, the Cranes would naturally prefer to be competing at the next stage already. But Shah is not allowing disappointment to become a distraction. “I think it is not a good thing to go down, but it is a pathway to the World Cup, and we don’t mind playing these kinds of qualifiers,” he said.

That is the reality of qualification cricket. The route might be longer than expected, but the destination remains within reach. Shah understands that the shorter format can be unpredictable. A team may be highly ranked, experienced and well prepared, but T20 cricket rarely offers guarantees.

“There are a couple of good teams in this tournament. It is a shorter format and every team can give us some good cricket and can surprise any team,” he noted.

Shah wants Uganda to play to their standard and give everything in every match. As captain, he will be expected to lead that approach while helping the team manage the pressure that comes with being the tournament’s highest-ranked side.

His ambitions are not modest, either. “Of course, win and top the table,” he said when asked what fans should expect from the Cricket Cranes.

Shah also sees the arrival of younger players as a positive development. He believes their desire to represent the national team and win matches can strengthen the group rather than weaken it.

The team has selected a blend of established performers, returning and new faces like Pius Oloka, wicketkeeper Cyrus Kakuru, batter Anas Baig Mirza, Charles Musemeza and Gerald Olipa, expected to raise their hands high. 

Olipa, who is still in Zimbabwe for the T20 Blast at the time of the team’s flag-off, is expected to join the squad before departure for Abuja, alongside Sumeet Verma, Raghav Dhawan and Alpesh Ramjani, who were also missing from the flag-off.

While Tikolo is thinking about team development and Shah is focused on the qualification target, Robinson Obuya has a personal storyline of his own.

The top-order batter is back in the Cricket Cranes setup after spending time away from the national team, and he is pleased to have regained his place.

“It’s a good feeling, being back on the team and regaining your spot and keeping doing wonders for the team,” he said. Obuya’s return has not, by his account, involved a dramatic reinvention of his game. Instead, he credits his belief in the processes that helped him earn his earlier opportunities.

“There is nothing much that I had to prove except for just having belief in my processes that had gotten me earlier to the team,” he explained.

Asked whether competing in a sub-regional qualifier after a bigger qualification campaign affects him mentally, his response was emphatic.

“There is no such tournament like this is a big tournament or this is a small tournament. We treat each and everything the same way.”

The Cranes may have to take a longer route back to the World Cup, but Obuya is not interested in treating any part of that journey as less important.

His target is to win the group and return to the Africa Regional Final.

Uganda will compete against Zambia, Lesotho, The Gambia, Mozambique and hosts Nigeria in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Sub-Regional Qualifier C. The top two teams will progress to the Africa Regional Final.