England to play Afghanistan despite boycott calls
Despite the call for boycott, England’s championship trophy match against Afghanistan will continue to move forward.
A cross-party letter signed by nearly 200 British politicians was sent to the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to demand that England refuse to play against the Taliban’s human rights record.
Women’s participation in sports in Afghanistan has been effective since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.
The matter was discussed at the ECB board meeting on Thursday, after which the governing body confirmed that the February 26 match in Lahore will be held as planned.
The ECB said in a statement that the situation in Afghanistan was “simply gender segregation” and supplemented the international response coordinated by the cricket community, which is an appropriate way forward.
“In cricket, when women and girls cricket is rapidly growing around the world, it is heartbreaking that those who grew up in Afghanistan rejected the opportunity, but the Taliban’s shock of women and girls went even more far away,” it reads.
It added that the ECB donated £100,000 to the Global Refugee Cricket Fund to help female cricketers in exile, and it will continue to urge the ICC to take action, including supporting Afghan women and girls who want to play cricket.
England will also play Australia and South Africa in the championship trophys held in Pakistan and Dubai on February 19.
England has played twice in Afghanistan in the 2022 T20 World Cup and 50 World Cups in 2023 since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.
The call for boycott of the fixtures led by Labor MP Tonia Antoniazzi said England players should use their “power” to “make a difference”.
Her Labour MP and Culture Minister Lisa Nandy said the game should move forward, adding that boycotts were counterproductive.
When asked last month about the possibility of leading a boycott, similar to the possibility that England refused to play in Zimbabwe during the 2003 World Cup, Captain Jos Butler said: “I don’t think it’s possible to not think boycott is possible. Way.”
