Steve Tikolo has been unveiled as the new head coach of the Uganda men’s national cricket team, the Cricket Cranes, returning for a third stint on a three year deal.
The Kenyan legend was confirmed on Friday at the Entebbe Cricket Oval, bringing to an end Cricket Uganda’s global search for a new head coach that attracted more than 75 applicants from 14 countries.
Tikolo replaces Abhay Sharma and returns to a team he has already worked with in two different periods over the past decade.
His latest appointment comes as Uganda prepares for a busy international calendar that includes regional competitions and ICC qualification tournaments.
This will be Tikolo’s third spell with the Cricket Cranes, having first worked with the team between 2012 and 2013 as assistant and batting coach under fellow Kenyan Martin Suji. His main task at the time was to address Uganda’s fragile batting line up.
During that period, Uganda won the 2012 Pepsi T20 African Premier League and finished second at the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 tournament in Bermuda in 2013 to secure promotion to Division 2. Tikolo later left in May 2013 to take charge of Kenya’s Under 19 national team.
He returned to Uganda in May 2016 as head coach, replacing Peter Kirsten, with a mandate to rebuild the squad and introduce younger players into the national setup. Among the players who came through during that phase were Zephaniah Arinaitwe and Rogers Olipa.
His second tenure included both setbacks and successes. Uganda endured a difficult home tournament at the 2017 ICC World Cricket League Division 3 in Kampala, finishing fifth and suffering relegation to Division 4.
The team responded the following year when Tikolo guided them to victory at the 2018 ICC World Cricket League Division 4 tournament in Malaysia to secure immediate promotion.
He ended his previous stint on a high in December 2019 when the Cricket Cranes posted a perfect 5-0 record in the opening leg of the ICC Challenge League B in Oman.
Tikolo stepped down the following month despite the Uganda Cricket Association expressing interest in extending his contract, later taking up a coaching role with Tanzania.
Known as a strict disciplinarian and a coach who focuses heavily on batting technique and mental toughness, Tikolo previously made bold tactical decisions during his tenure, including moving experienced batsman Roger Mukasa down the order to stabilize Uganda’s middle overs.
