England will certainly play Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy later on this month regardless of phone calls from British political leaders to boycott the suit over the Taliban routine’s curtailment of ladies’s civil liberties.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) verified on Thursday that the component would certainly proceed in Lahore on February 26 after speaking with the UK federal government, the International Cricket Council (ICC) and England gamers.
More than 160 British political leaders had actually required a boycott as women engagement in sporting activity has actually properly been banned given that the Taliban’s go back to power in 2021.
That places the Afghanistan cricket board up in arms with ICC policies, though the males’s group are permitted to complete.
ECB chairman Richard Thompson explained the circumstance in Afghanistan as “gender apartheid” yet stated the suit would certainly occur.
“We remain of the view that a coordinated international response by the cricketing community is the appropriate way forward, and will achieve more than any unilateral action by the ECB in boycotting this match,” he stated.
“We have also heard that for many ordinary Afghans, watching their cricket team is one of the few remaining sources of enjoyment. As such, we can confirm that we will play this fixture.”
Afghanistan have actually come to be a higher pressure in white-ball cricket over the last few years, increasing to 8th in the one-day global globe positions, simply one area listed below England.
Both sides will certainly additionally encounter Australia and South Africa in Group B of the 50-over competition, which will certainly be held in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates from February 19 till March 9.
kca/jw/jc
