Ex-Kenyan star happy to mould future stars in Botswana
Former Kenyan cricket team player Joseph Angara has tipped Botswana to do well in future. The former bowler who coaches the southern African nation’s national team has set up development structures to attain this. PHOTO | CHRIS OMOLLO |
What you need to know:
- Bowler who represented Kenya twice in World Cup open to coaching the team in future
- As cricket coach of the southern African country, the former Kenyan international has put in place development structures in his mission of creating a winning culture
- Playing as a right arm medium pacer, Angara featured for Kenyan team between 1997 and 2005.
Joseph Angara, the Botswana cricket national team head coach, is a man on a mission.
The 48-year-old is determined to leave a mark with the Southern African nation, just like he did when he played for Kenya about three decades ago.
In July, the former Kenyan international will start his sixth straight year in charge of Botswana’s cricket national team. And he is resolute in getting the country’s cricket to the top.
“It (time) has gone so fast, but I am happy with the team’s progress and achievements,” Angara told Nation Sport from his base in Gaborone, Botswana.
Playing as a right arm medium pacer, Angara featured for Kenyan team between 1997 and 2005.
He was part of the team that represented the country in the 1999 and 2003 editions of the ICC Cricket World Cup, with the latter being the most memorable outing as Kenya reached the semi-finals.
The 1999 World Cup was held in England, while the 2003 edition was co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya.
Angara quit the national team in 2005 and moved to South Africa where he played for Gugulethu Cricket Club for three seasons, before returning home to develop coaching programmes for schools. In 2009, he was appointed coach of Kenya Under-19 team, a position he held until when he took over as coach of Botswana in July 2015.
Five years down the line, Angara says there is some light at the end of the tunnel in his mission of creating a “winning team” for Botswana. This is due to a development programme he initiated in partnership with Botswana Cricket Association, where male learners both in primary and secondary schools are introduced to the game at their respective learning institutions.
“Every week, we have five development officers in every region visiting schools to train the students on cricket. On weekends, we bring the talented boys to a centre where they go through intense training with the hard ball, because at school, they can only train with tennis balls,” says Angara.
The programme has led to the establishment of three leagues for the learners based on their age groups and it is spread throughout the year. In the first term, the schools compete in an under-15 league, while under-13 and under-19 league competitions take place in the second and third terms respectively.
Thirty players who impressed in the competition are then selected for a weekly training camp during the school holidays, from where outstanding players are selected to join the two under-19 national cricket teams. The teams compete in the Gaborone Cricket Club League.
“I am proud there is a lot of positive talk in the changing room because the boys believe in themselves. There is a lot of competition in team selection right from under 15 categories,” says the former Kenyan bowler.
Had coronavirus pandemic not halted sports activities globally, Angara would have led his troops in fighting for honours at the inaugural T20 Africa Cup in Nairobi from March 20 to 25.
Because of the structured development programme back in Botswana, Angara was optimistic of a good performance in the eight-nation tournament.
“The programme has given us the opportunity to get the best players for a competition. It is for this that we qualified for the T20 Africa Cup in Nairobi from our region (Southern Africa). We had confidence of doing well because,” he says.
After he took the Botswana’s job, Angara gave the country’s fans a glimpse of his abilities almost immediately by leading Botswana Under-19 team to a runners-up position in the qualifiers of 2016 ICC Africa Twenty20 Division Two tournament.
But 2018 remains his most memorable year, as Botswana won the International Cricket Council Southern Africa region T20 qualifiers and Africa Cricket Association Cup at home.
“I want to leave proper structures with pathway to the national team. I believe that is how Botswana’s cricket will rise,” says Angara on the legacy he wants to leave behind as the southern African nation’s cricket coach.
He hopes to coach the Kenya Cricket national team before calling it a day in the game.
“It is every coach’s dream to give service to his country. I will grab that opportunity if it comes,” says Angara who in December 2018 organised a six-a-side cricket tournament for selected primary schools in his home area of Nyahera in Kisumu County.
