Nigeria beat Zambia by nine wickets at the Nigeria Cricket Federation Oval 1 in Abuja on 21 October 2026, chasing 143 in just 14.5 overs. Player of the match Isaac Danladi finished unbeaten on 90 off 47 balls, with three fours and nine sixes, in the sixth match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier Group C.
How It Unfolded
Zambia won the toss and chose to bat. Ismail Kara carried their innings with 82 off 44 balls, hitting six fours and seven sixes, and Jakir Patel added 21 off 16. Little else came: Ayaz Dadabhai made 6, Shadreck Malama 4 and Joyeb Chand 3, and Zambia finished on 142/9.
Abdullahi Ismail was the pick of the Nigeria attack with 3/9 from his four overs. Isaac Okpe took 2/25, Kenneth Boniface 1/1 from 1.2 overs and Sylvester Okpe 1/26.
Nigeria's reply was never in doubt. Danladi and Selim Salau put the chase out of reach before Salau was run out for 50 off 39 balls, with four fours and two sixes. Danladi then finished the job alongside Ali Rahmon, who was 4 not out, as Nigeria reached 146/1. No Zambia bowler took a wicket.
The Oracle's Call
The CricMind Oracle locked Nigeria as 71% favourites before the toss, with Zambia at 29%, and the call was correct. Nigeria went into the match rated 39th to Zambia's 54th and had won all three previous T20I meetings between the sides. Read the full Oracle call.
What's Next
The result leaves Nigeria with two wins in the group and Zambia with none. Nigeria's other win came in the third match, by 160 runs. Uganda have also won twice, while Lesotho and Mozambique have one win each. Follow the rest of the group on the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier Group C hub.
Source: Scorecard and the Oracle call.