If the warm-up games were anything to go by, Uganda will be struggling while a formerly lacklustre Kenya will battle their way through to next year's finals in the T20 World Cup cricket qualifiers starting in UAE today (Friday).

Uganda lost by six wickets to Papua New Guinea (PNG) and by a similar margin to a powerful Afghanistan side, while Kenya comprehensively defeated Namibia before dispatching Hong Kong by three wickets.

PNG went on to defeat tournament favourites Ireland, so Uganda's loss may not be that devastating; but Kenya did well, especially against Hong Kong, who'd had a 140-run victory over Denmark the previous day.

A key point, however, is that Kenya did so well without suspended captain and batsman Collins Obuya, who returns only for the competition proper today (Fri). That must leave Kenya with a selection dilemma.

Meanwhile Uganda, in a bizarre move, gave the captaincy to more-or-less untested glove man Abram Mutyagaba for their match against Afghanistan in Sharjah, and he celebrated with a skipper's duck! (One can't help but think what dropped EA Cup champions Warriors' captain and former national wicketkeeper Lawrence Ssematimba will have made of this.)

Uganda were being touted as the team from Africa to watch, but in the long run it may be Kenya's old stagers who come out on top of the pack.