2001 ICC Africa Under-19 Championship
The 2001 ICC Africa Under-19 Championship was a cricket tournament held in Uganda from 5–9 January 2001. All matches were played in the capital Kampala. The tournament was a round-robin, with five teams playing each other once. Namibia finished first, ahead of a combined East and Central Africa side, and consequently qualified for the 2002 Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand. Tanzanian batsman Utpal Patel, playing for East and Central Africa, led the tournament in runs scored. Three players, Kenya's Alfred Luseno, Namibia's Michael Durant, and Nigeria's O. Animashaun (playing for  West Africa), led the tournament in wickets taken, with nine apiece. The tournament was the inaugural edition of the ICC Africa Under-19 Championships, which provide a direct qualification route to the Under-19 World Cup for African Cricket Association members. Two other African teams, South Africa and Zimbabwe, are full members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and thus qualify automatically. Another edition of the tournament was not held until 2007. Instead, a joint tournament was organised with ICC East Asia-Pacific teams, held on two occasions (in 2003 and 2005). Teams and qualification. Two combined regional teams, East and Central  Africa and West Africa, participated in the championship for the first and only time, respectively organised by the East and Central Africa Cricket Conference and the West Africa Cricket Council. Players from Malawi, Tanzania, and Zambia were eligible for East and Central Africa, while players from The Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone were eligible for West Africa. Table. Source: CricketArchive Statistics. Most runs. The top five run scorers are included in this table, ranked by runs scored and then by batting average. Source: CricketArchive Most wickets. The top five wicket takers are listed in this table, ranked by wickets  taken and then by bowling average. Source: CricketArchive