World No. 10 South Africa swept Kenya in a five-game series played at Crafford Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa, to become the first nation qualified for the first-ever WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup, to be held this year from 22-30 October in Parana, Argentina. The host team also was crowned as the first-ever African softball champion in the newly launched U-23 category.
South Africa topped Kenya in the first game, 10-0, on Tuesday. Games two to four were played on Wednesday, with the host squad winning 20-2; 15-0; 24-0 and 22-2.
South Africa is the first of 12 teams to booked into the inaugural WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup. They will face 11 teams to qualify through the continental qualifiers, including four teams from the Americas, two from Europe, two from Asia, two from Oceania and a wild card.
Kenya will be earning their first-ever ranking points and, in the next release, will make their historic debut at the WBSC Men’s Softball World Rankings.
Starting today (Thursday, 10 February), Botswana, Kenya and South Africa will open the African Men’s Softball Championship, a qualifier for the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup, to be played later this year in Auckland, New Zealand.
The three teams will play a double round robin, and the top team in the standings will advance directly to the final on Saturday at 15:00, while second- and third-place teams will face off in the semi-finals at noon on Saturday.
