Tragic Loss for Cricket: Kaia Arua, Papua New Guinea All-Rounder, Passes Away at 33

Renowned all-rounder for the Lewas, Kaia Arua, who first donned the national team colours at the East Asia-Pacific Trophy in 2010 against host nation Japan, has tragically passed away at the age of 33. Arua’s cricketing prowess made her a regular feature in PNG’s team for various East-Asia Pacific pathway events and Pacific Games cricket. Her talent and leadership skills led to her inclusion in the squad for the 2017 Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier.

Arua’s cricketing journey saw her ascend to the captaincy of PNG during a match against Ireland at the 2018 T20 World Cup Qualifier. Her leadership skills were further recognized when she was named in the ICC Women’s Global Development squad in the same year. Arua took on the captaincy role permanently at the 2019 East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup Qualifier, steering her team to a tournament victory and securing qualification for both the 2019 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier and the 2021 Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournaments.

Known for her flowing left-arm wrist spin and intelligent batting, Arua led Papua New Guinea in 29 T20Is with official status, securing 29 victories. Her record of 59 T20I wickets at an average of 10.2 is the highest by a PNG women’s international. Her impressive figures of 5/7 (4) against Japan are the second-best in her team’s T20I history.

In the burgeoning era of women’s franchise T20 cricket, Arua also showcased her skills in the Fairbreak tournaments of 2022 and 2023, representing the Falcons.