Alison Mitchell – A look at cricket in Rwanda

Alison Mitchell recounts the remarkable tale of Rwandan cricket 

Earlier this week a small yellow digger manoeuvred itself into position while a small band of dignitaries grabbed spades and posed for a photo on an undulating grassy field seven kilometres outside of Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda.

The guests were taking part in a special ‘ground-breaking’ ceremony to mark the start of construction work on the country’s first international- standard cricket ground.

They were also celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan Cricket Association (RCA), which was formed in the years following the Rwandan genocide of 1994, in which an estimated 800,000 people were killed in the space of 100 bloody days between April and June.

The story of Rwandan cricket is a remarkable one, and we tell it on my BBC World Service programme, Stumped, this weekend.

It was just over 21 years ago that President Juvenal Habyarimana’s plane was shot down above Kigali airport, sparking violence that escalated into mass slaughter.

The small band of enthusiasts who formed the RCA in 1999 grew up in exile, having fled to countries such as Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda during the massacre. When they returned to their homeland to build new lives for themselves, they brought cricket with them.

The new cricket ground has been the long-term project of the Rwanda Cricket Stadium Foundation (RCSF), a British-based charity set up in 2011 to build and manage on a not-for-profit basis the building of the first ever dedicated international cricket ground in the country, which even has Jonathan Agnew as a patron.

The idea of a home for cricket in Rwanda was first developed by

Christopher Shale, a former British Army officer who had been involved in charity work in Rwanda since 2007 and had witnessed firsthand an enthusiasm for the game, which needed nurturing. Shale died in 2011 but the RCSF has continued in his memory and his vision is now becoming reality.

While the new ground is built, the only cricket ground in Rwanda remains a small, lumpy field that was leased from the Kicukiro College of Technology back in 2002. Harrowingly, it is the same field that was the site of a notorious massacre that took place at the height of the atrocities. RCSF literature describes how, “before a ball could be bowled, the two metre-high grass was cut, revealing the remains of victims”.

Despite its morbid history, the ground has been providing fulfilling experiences for countless cricketers – male and female – who throw themselves into the game with abandon.

The ant hills and ‘ankle-twister’ holes which are scattered across the outfield don’t put them off any more than the concrete wicket with its worn matting and single shed that doubles as a storage house and shelter.

When the new ground is complete though, there will be two ovals, complete with international standard turf pitches, practice nets, rollers and mowers, sightscreens and scoreboards, and a proper pavilion which will house the RCA and RCSF, giving them a base from where they can expand and  develop the game.

There are already 7,000 Rwandan cricketers in the country, according to William Gelling, the British High Commissioner, who helped lay the foundation stone in Gahanga, part of Kicukiro District in the centre of Rwanda.

Gelling took part in the ceremony alongside special guest Makhaya Ntini, the former South Africa fast bowler, who described how cricket changed his life and altered his outlook.

He hopes that the development of the new facilities in Gahanga will foster a growth that extends beyond the boundary.

“Cricket isn’t just cricket,” he said. “It is life on its own. It changes the way of thinking. It changes the way of living, or thinking beyond what you are and what you will do in life.

“I never thought I would be a star. If I wasn’t a cricketer I would have been a farm boy, ploughing and looking after cattle. Through cricket, the mindset has changed.”

It is a powerful perspective, and one shared by the president of the RCA Charles Haba, who was one of the exiles who brought cricket into the country when he returned.

He proudly explains that cricket has been the catalyst for bringing people together in Rwanda.

The game, he says, is played by those who lived in Rwanda before the

genocide, by expats, by vulnerable people and child-headed households, as well as featuring in schools, orphanages and universities.

So far, through a mixture of corporate partnerships and fund-raising efforts, the RCSF has raised £600,000 towards the cost of building the new ground.

It is intended that the design will be sensitive to the green hilly surroundings; the new pavilion will feature a bar and restaurant incorporating solar power and rainwater harvesting.

There will also be a children’s play area and a sustainable vegetable garden.

A full drainage and irrigation system will pit man against nature when it comes to the rainy seasons.

A vital part of the project is its long-term sustainability. Further down the line the ground will house tennis courts, a gym and swimming pool as well as dormitory accommodation.

A training, coaching and support structure will be put in place, providing opportunities and employment to local Rwandans. A further part of the plan is to attract touring teams to come and play. If the ground is able to generate its own revenue streams, its survival ought to be ensured.

So what of the actual cricket? Rwanda enjoys a temperate climate, meaning cricket can be played nearly all year round (give or take the rainy seasons).

The country has developed an 11-month long schedule, which incorporates a club league, three club tournaments, and school and university competitions.

In 2003 Rwanda became an Affiliate Member of the International Cricket Council.

In 2011 the national men’s team won the ICC Africa Division 3 Championships and two of the country’s most promising female cricketers were selected by the ICC to benefit from a training clinic in South Africa.

The year before, Rwanda’s U19 girls’ team beat Kenya, historically the regional heavyweights.

All this, with just one cricket pitch; just think what they could do with two.

You can hear Stumped every week on BBC World Service. Download podcast: www.bbcworldservice.com/stumped

This piece originally featured in The Cricket Paper on Friday December 18 2015