Netball legend Peace Chawinga-Kaluwa says the Queens should be commended for finishing on position six at the just ended 2019 Vitality World Netball Cup which was held from 12–21 July in Liverpool, England.

The remarks come after the Queens lost their final match of the tournament to Jamaica by 68-50 on Sunday to book a place in the top six.

Kaluwa, who is currently coaching Tigresses Netball Cup, said the Queens preparations prior to the tournament were not adequate enough considering the level of the tournament but the girls have put in a good fight.

Kaluwa said: “Finishing at position six out of sixteen teams is a welcome development considering how the team conducted its preparations prior to the tournament as compared to our fellow African teams like South Africa and Uganda who had intensive preparations including more friendly matches with highly ranked countries.”

Kaluwa further said the team, which recently dropped on the International Netball Federation (INF) ranking from position six to nine, is likely going to rise.

She cited the victories registered by the queens at the tournament over the higher ranked countries like Northern Ireland and Uganda as an added advantage for the team to climb higher on the INF ranking.

Commenting on the quality of current Queens squad, Kaluwa advised the Netball Association of Malawi (NAM) to consider grooming some new blood because most of the current players are ageing.

During the whole tournament Malawi has managed to play eight games registering five victories and three loses.

New Zealand has grabbed the 2019 Netball World Cup championship after beating the previous cup holders, Australia, by a narrow margin of 52-51.