Afghanistan women's national cricket team

Last updated

Afghanistan
Association Afghanistan Cricket Board
Women's international cricket
First internationalvs Flag of Tajikistan.svg Tajikistan in Dushanbe, July 2012
As of 5 January 2023

The Afghanistan women's national cricket team was the team that represented the country of Afghanistan in international women's cricket matches. The team was first established in 2010, but played only a single tournament amidst opposition from Islamists opposed to women's sport. [1] An attempt at revival was made in 2020 when the Afghanistan Cricket Board awarded central contracts to 25 players. However, the team was disbanded following the 2021 Taliban offensive and capture of Kabul in accordance with the Taliban's ban on women's sport.

Contents

History

2010–2014

The team was first formed in 2010, [2] but disbanded in 2014. [1] Although the team never played representative cricket in ICC competition, it had been scheduled to take part in the 2011 ACC Women's Twenty20 Championship in Kuwait, which ran from 17 to 25 February. The team was forced to withdraw from the tournament before travelling to Kuwait due to elements in Afghanistan opposing women's participation in sport. [3]

In 2012, the team participated in a 6 team tournament in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, [4] and became Champion by winning four matches and tying one. [5]

2020–August 2021

In November 2020, the Afghanistan Cricket Board awarded central contracts to twenty-five players, in their bid to form a national team to take part in ICC tournaments. [6] [7] In October 2020, ACB organised skills and fitness camp as well as the national team trial camp at the Alokozay Kabul International Cricket Ground for the players who were selected from the talent pool. [8] [9]

In April 2021, the ICC awarded permanent Test and One Day International (ODI) status to all full member women's teams. [10]

August 2021–present

Concerns regarding the safety of the Afghan women cricketers and development of women's cricket in Afghanistan were raised following the 2021 Taliban offensive and the 15 August 2021 Fall of Kabul. [11] [12] [13]

As of 31 August 2021, three of the Afghan women's cricket team, Roya Samim and her two sisters, were in exile in Canada. Samim said that the team members remaining in Afghanistan were afraid of the Taliban. She stated that the International Cricket Council (ICC) had failed to respond to emails calling for help from team members seeking evacuation from Afghanistan, and that the Afghan Cricket Board (ACB) had given no help except to say "Wait". The ICC said that it was not aware of having received emails asking for help and that it was closely monitoring the situation. According to The Guardian , the ICC was keeping in contact with the ACB in order to avoid acting unilaterally. An ACB spokesperson stated that the Taliban appeared to support the continuation of men's cricket. [14]

One of the team members was threatened by the Taliban after the fall of Kabul with being killed "if [she tried] to play cricket again". Another team member, in exile as of 2 September 2021, stated that the ICC "never help" the women's cricket team, "always disappoint" the team and only communicate with the ACB rather than contacting the women's team directly. Several of the team members expressed their expectations and hopes for the women's team to reorganise. [15]

Hamid Shinwari, chief executive officer of the ACB, stated in early September 2021 that he expected the Afghan women's cricket team "to be stopped". [15] The Taliban also said that Afghan women would be barred from playing sport. [16] However, Afghanistan Cricket Board's chairman Azizullah Fazli clarified later in an Al Jazeera interview that women will be allowed to play cricket and that they would not be stopped. [17]

As of April 2023, most of the squad had re-united in Australia. [18]

Tournament history

Host/YearRound/Rank
Flag of Tajikistan.svg Women's Tournament in Dushanbe, 2012Champions

Head coaches

Captains

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghanistan national cricket team</span>

The Afghanistan men's national cricket team represents Afghanistan in international cricket. Cricket has been played in Afghanistan since the mid-19th century, but it was only in the early 21st century that the national team began to enjoy success. The Afghanistan Cricket Board was formed in 1995, becoming an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and a member of the cricket confederation, Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003. After nearly a decade of playing international cricket, on 22 June 2017 full ICC membership was granted to Afghanistan. Alongside Ireland, this took the number of Test cricket playing nations to twelve. Afghanistan is the first country to achieve Full Member status after holding Affiliate Membership of the ICC. In view of the persistent conflict and insecurity in Afghanistan, following this status, the team moved to a new home ground in Dehradun, in India. The current home ground of the Afghanistan Men's Cricket team is the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the UAE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women's cricket</span> Bat-and-ball game played by women

Women's cricket is the team sport of cricket when played by women. Its rules are almost identical to those in the game played by men, the main change being the use of a smaller ball. Women's cricket is beginning to be played at professional level in 11 of the 12 full members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and is played worldwide, especially in Commonwealth nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghanistan Cricket Board</span> Governing body of cricket in Afghanistan

The Afghanistan Cricket Board is the official governing body of cricket in Afghanistan. It is Afghanistan's representative at the International Cricket Council (ICC) and was an associate member of ICC from June 2013 until becoming a full member in June 2017. Before that it was an affiliate member and has been a member of that body since 2001. It is also a member of the Asian Cricket Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asghar Afghan</span> Afghan cricketer

Mohammad Asghar Afghan is an Afghan former cricketer who had captained the Afghanistan national cricket team. Asghar is a right-handed batsman and a medium-fast bowler. In May 2018, he was named as the captain of Afghanistan, for their inaugural Test match, against India. He made his Test debut, against India, on 14 June 2018. On 2 August 2018, he changed his last name from Stanikzai to Afghan.

Shafiqullah Shafaq is an Afghan cricketer, who played for the Afghanistan national cricket team before being banned from cricket for corruption. He is a right-handed batsman who plays primarily as a wicketkeeper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cricket in Afghanistan</span>

Cricket in Afghanistan is the most popular sport in the country, which is represented internationally by the Afghanistan national cricket team. Afghanistan's border with the Test playing nation of Pakistan has helped the game to take root. Pakistan's former batsman Inzamam ul Haq has coached the Afghan national team in the past. Afghanistan became a full member of the International Cricket Council on 22 June 2017, enabling the national team to participate in official Test matches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in Afghanistan</span>

Sport in Afghanistan is managed by the Afghan Sports Federation. Currently, cricket and association football (soccer) are the most popular sports in Afghanistan. The Afghan Sports Federation has promoted many types of sports, including basketball, bodybuilding, boxing, bowling, cricket, football, golf, mountaineering, paragliding, skating, skiing, snooker, taekwondo, track and field, volleyball, and weightlifting. The traditional sport of Afghanistan has been Buzkashi, which is now occasionally seen in the northern parts of the country.

Mohammad Shahzad Mohammadi is a former Afghan cricketer. He is a right-handed opening batsman and a wicketkeeper. He made his international debut for Afghanistan in August 2009 against the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulbadin Naib</span> Afghan cricketer

Gulbadin Naib is an Afghan cricketer. An all-rounder, Naib bats right-handed and bowls right-arm fast-medium. In April 2019, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) named Naib the team's new One Day International (ODI) captain ahead of the 2019 Cricket World Cup, replacing Asghar Afghan. However, following the Cricket World Cup, where Afghanistan lost all of their matches, Rashid Khan was named as the new captain of the Afghanistan cricket team across all three formats. Naib led Afghanistan to the silver medal in the 2022 Asian Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup</span> Seventh edition of the ICC Mens T20 World Cup

The 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the seventh edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, a Twenty20 cricket tournament that took place from 17 October to 14 November 2021. The tournament was formally hosted by India, with matches played in Oman and the United Arab Emirates. It was scheduled to be hosted by Australia in 2020 but later postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shpageeza Cricket League</span> Cricket tournament

The Shpageeza Cricket League is a Twenty20 cricket tournament organized by the Afghanistan Cricket Board every year in Afghanistan. The Shpageeza tournament is established with eight franchises, including players from the national team, overseas, players from the ‘A’ team and players from the under 19 team as well as elite performers from the respective regions participating in this tournament. In addition, ACB has given the league an identity by franchising all team while players will be selected through a draft for each team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rashid Khan</span> Afghan cricketer (born 1998)

Rashid Khan Arman is an Afghan international cricketer and captain of the Afghanistan national team in the T20I format. In franchise leagues, he plays for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Adelaide Strikers in Australia's Big Bash League (BBL), Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), Band-e-Amir Dragons in Afghanistan's Shpageeza Cricket League and MI New York in Major League Cricket (MLC). He bowls right-arm leg spin and is an aggressive right-handed batsman.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz is an Afghan cricketer. He made his international debut for Afghanistan in September 2019. His parents hail from the Gurbaz tribe of Afghanistan. In January 2021, he became the first batsman for Afghanistan to score a century on debut in a One Day International (ODI), against Ireland.

The 2017 season of the Shpageeza Cricket League, also known as SCL 5, was the fifth edition of the Shpageeza, a professional Twenty20 cricket league established by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) in 2013. The tournament featured the six teams that played in the previous season. The 2017 season was reported to be played from 18 to 28 July 2017, but took place in September 2017, with the Kabul International Cricket Ground hosting all the matches.

Qais Ahmad Kamawal is an Afghan cricketer. He made his Test debut for the Afghanistan cricket team in September 2019.

The 2021–22 international cricket season took place from September 2021 to April 2022. 29 Tests, 111 One Day Internationals (ODIs), 112 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), 25 Women's One Day Internationals (WODIs), 40 Women's Twenty20 Internationals (WT20Is), and two women's Test matches were scheduled to be played during this period. Additionally, a number of other T20I/WT20I matches were also scheduled to be played in series involving associate nations.

Sediqullah Atal, also known as Sediq Atal, is an Afghan cricketer. He is an opening batter, who made his international debut for Afghanistan in 2023.

Abdul Latif Ayoubi is an Afghan cricketer and the owner of the Kabul Eagles franchise cricket team. His bowling is described as medium-fast. He made his on-field debut as a player at the age of 40.

The 2022 Shpageeza Cricket League was the eighth edition of the Shpageeza Cricket League, a professional Twenty20 cricket (T20) league established by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) in 2013, and the fourth edition to have official T20 status. It was originally scheduled to run from 10 to 25 September 2021, with the number of teams increased from six to eight. However, no tournament took place in 2021, with the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announcing that the tournament would be played in June and July 2022. The Kabul Eagles were the defending champions.

Roya Samim is an Afghan women's cricketer, who currently plays for Canadian club cricket team Fredericton. She was expected to play for the Afghanistan women's national cricket team before the team was dissolved following the 2021 Taliban offensive.

References

  1. 1 2 "Afghan Girls Want A (Cricket) League Of Their Own". Radio Liberty. 18 April 2018.
  2. ↑ First women's cricket team for Afghanistan
  3. ↑ "Afghanistan's Pioneer Women". Asian Cricket Council. 15 August 2011.
  4. ↑ "اعتراض تیم ملی کریکت زنان افغانستان". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "تیم کرکت دختران افغان، بر سکوی قهرمانی - ورزش - کریکت". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  6. ↑ "ACB to award central contracts to 25 female cricketers". Afghanistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  7. ↑ "ACB shortlists 25 for national women's team". CricBuzz. 5 November 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  8. ↑ "Women cricketers defy threats to play for Afghanistan". news.trust.org. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  9. ↑ "Afghanistan Cricket Board urges patience with women's initiatives". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  10. ↑ "The International Cricket Council (ICC) Board and Committee meetings have concluded following a series of virtual conference calls". ICC. 1 April 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
  11. ↑ "Return of Taliban deals a body blow to Afghanistan cricket and women's football teams". Sify . Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  12. ↑ "Afghan female athletes told to go into hiding and delete online profiles in fear of Taliban". inews.co.uk. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  13. ↑ "Afghan women's team expected to be stopped". BBC Sport. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  14. ↑ Aldred, Tanya (31 August 2021). "Afghanistan women's cricketers left feeling abandoned by authorities". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  15. 1 2 Wright, George (2 September 2021). "Afghanistan women's cricket team: Players hiding in Kabul fear Taliban rule". BBC News . Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  16. ↑ "Afghan women to be banned from playing sport, Taliban say". The Guardian. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  17. ↑ Ghani, Faras (13 October 2021). "Ban? No ban? Afghan cricket chief offers hope to women athletes". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  18. ↑ Afghanistan women's cricket team: In limbo and in exile in Australia, George Wright, BBC Sport, 18 April 2023
  19. ↑ "Afghan women's cricket crushed by threats and tradition | The National". www.thenational.ae. Archived from the original on 28 December 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.