President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s high-level presidential delegation to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, rallied support for Nigeria’s senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, as they won a historic fifth consecutive AfroBasket title on Sunday night. The president was pleased with the sound performance of the team after the final.
The delegation is led by Shehu Dikko, Chairman of the National Sports Commission, and includes top government officials and notable figures in Nigeria’s sports and media landscape.
Among them are Minister of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa; Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Anite; former Minister of Sports and presidential spokesman, Sunday Dare; Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital and New Media, Otega Ogra; and Senior Special Assistant on Media, Busola Kukoyi.
The D’Tigress, who remained unbeaten in AfroBasket competition for a decade, won the AfroBasket final against Mali 78-64 in what has been dubbed a decisive showcase of skill, resilience, and national pride.
The victory reaffirms Nigeria’s supremacy on the continent and also bolsters its growing profile on the global basketball stage. Nigeria and Mali not only passed the group phase with flying colours but also continued their dominance in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
Both teams demonstrated tenacity and resolve to secure a spot in the highly anticipated final game of this year’s African Championship. Since the 2011 tournament in Bamako, Nigeria and Mali have faced off six times.
That year, Mali, the host country, ended Nigeria’s hopes of winning the title with a 71–62 semifinal victory.
Two years later, in Maputo, Mozambique, Mali defeated Nigeria twice. First, they won 78-45 in the group phase, then they won 57-50 in the fifth-place game.
Two years later, in 2019, Nigeria beat Mali 79-58 in Dakar, Senegal. They beat them again in the 2021 tournament final in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Since 2011, Mali and Nigeria have each won three times.
The trophy will finally land in Abuja. Just like this year, four years ago, Mali and Nigeria both reached the Women’s AfroBasket undefeated after four games. Nigeria ultimately brought their A-game, denying Mali a victory with a final score of 70-59.
Interestingly, eight players from each team that played in the 2021 championship game are on the current rosters.
