The three-day prestigious and exciting Cricket in the Wild tournament at Ol Pejeta Conservancy ended on a highly successful note on Sunday when Team Gayner (England) beat Team Outram (Kenya, and defending champions) by 4 wickets in a last ball thriller.

The tournament was contested by six teams from Kenya, South Africa and England.

The score in the final was:

Team Outram – 119 for 2 wickets in 10 overs with Rob Harte and Luke Nightingale both scoring 21 (both rtd),

Team Gayner – 120 for 6 wickets in 10 overs with Colm Singleton scoring 22 and Luke Nightingale taking 2/9.

The tournament raised KShs 3m for Ol Pejeta Conservancy’s Community Outreach Program which aims at improving the lives and livelihoods of the communities living around Ol Pejeta Conservancy, confirmed Richard Vigne, CEO of the conservancy, and instigator of the tournament.

The highlight of the tournament was a hat trick taken by Joss Ridley of Team Tucker.

The tournament was umpired by Subhash Modi, Lalji Bhudia and Mohammed Khan while the scorer was Aliya Bauer. The score board operators were Charity Warungu, Danson Njenga and Wilson Bugei.

The whole tournament was an exciting and enriching experience for the players, match officials and organizers.

“My congratulations go to Chief Executive Director of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Richard Vigne, (originator) of the tournament and his organising team for hosting a well organised and highly successful cricket tournament, "Cricket in the Wild" for three days on 28th, 29th, and 30th September, 2007 at
the Ol Pejeta Conservancy….” said Subhash Modi, an umpire, “It was a unique, exciting, enjoyable … experience for (the) six participating teams from England, South Africa and Kenya and also for the umpires, scorers and officials. The purpose of this event was for a noble cause as it raised a substantial
amount of money for the betterment of the people staying around the Ol Pejeta Conservancy. Kenya should take pride as cricket is also played in the game parks of Kenya. Well Done to the Management and Staff of Ol Pejeta Conservancy. I enjoyed my umpiring experience and involvement. Thank you and kind regards.”


The annual event raises money for the conservancy’s Community Outreach Program which runs development projects in the surrounding areas, with emphasis on health and education facilities, water and road infrastructure, community-based Eco-tourism and agricultural extension.

“We will hold the tournament again next year, and we look forward to seeing you all back here then…” said Richard Vigne, Executive Director of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, “Ol Pejeta Conservancy wishes to thank all those who took part in making this event a success. Special thanks go to each of the participating teams for their great efforts in raising funds for this noble cause and for taking their time to travel and to participate in the event. We would also like to thank the sponsors and those who donated raffle items – Driftwood Beach Club, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Rhino Ark, Rhino Porini Camp, Sarova Hotels, Fly 540, Callum Looman, Kingfisher, Aqua Ventures, Farmers Choice, KWAL and Serena Hotels. Many special thanks to the umpiring team – Subhash Modi, Lalji Bhudia and Mohammed Khan, and to the scorer Ms Aliya Bauer, for volunteering their time, skills and energy to this cause. Many thanks to Nanyuki Cottage Hospital for volunteering the stand-by first-aid team and to Neesha, Alpana and Sophie for their exemplary catering and accommodation services”.