Malawi Queens taste first win
Malawi Queens heaved a sigh of relief yesterday after beating Fiji Pearls 65-42 to earn their first win in six Test Series matches.
Since they travelled to Europe a fortnight ago, the fifth-ranked Queens lost four internationals against two top-ranked teams Australia and New Zealand.
The Pacific champions, Fiji, are ranked two places below the Malawi Queens.
The Malawians led 16-12 in the first quarter before increasing the tally to 35-21 and 47-32 in the subsequent segments. This was the Queens’ first of two test matches against Fiji.
When a Facebook friend to Queens’ star shooter Mwawi Kumwenda congratulated her and the team for finally earning a victory after suffering embarrassing defeats, saying: “mwawinako? Congrats,” Kumwenda had a seemingly astounding reply.
“Timawina, koma sitingachinye NZ and Australia. Sizingachitike Malawi kuchinya matimu akuluwa.” (We always win, but we cannot beat New Zealand and Australia; it is not possible to beat these two big teams.)
When another inquisitive friend asked her: “Cholepheretsa ndi chani Mwawi? (Why can’t we win against those teams?), she answered: “Tseka pakamwa. Usandichimwitse.” (Shut your mouth. Do not provoke me.)
However, prior to the Fiji match, Queens head coach Griffin ‘Zagalo’ Saenda was quoted by Radio New Zealand International as saying that his players have made a lot of improvement over the past 12 months and the game was one of the big chances to convert their potential into victory.
“The way we played wasn’t the best we could do and the way they are going to do it we’re going to see, but, probably, with Fiji we’re going to play 50/50. So, we’re looking forward for the first win against Fiji,” he said.
The Queens, who will head back to New Zealand for Fast5 Tournament after the Fiji encounters, lost 84-35 and 64-37 to Australia’s Diamonds in the test matches before stuttering to 68-49 and 70-32 losses to New Zealand.
