Exiled Afghan women welcome funding pledge with hope and tears

A funding pledge from the International Cricket Council (ICC) has given Afghanistan's exiled women cricketers hope of recognition and the chance to play on the international stage in defiance of the Taliban.

The game's global governing body said on Sunday it would set up a dedicated fund to support the Afghan women, most of whom have resettled in Australia after fleeing Afghanistan when the Taliban swept to power in 2021.

The ICC declined to provide financial details or a timeline for the disbursement of funds but the players are hopeful the pledge will prove a watershed for the women's game.

"We feel inspired and valued," Nahida Sapan, one of the refugee cricketers based in Melbourne, told Reuters.

"This news gave us a lot of confidence for the future.

"We messaged each other and called each other about it. Some of the girls were crying because we worked really hard for it."

Sapan was among 25 women contracted by the Afghanistan cricket board in 2020 who hoped to follow the men's team by playing on the game's global stage.

Most have started new lives in Australia, with some moving to Britain and Canada.

Captained by Sapan, the Australia-based cricketers played an exhibition match in January against a team arranged by Cricket Without Borders, a non-profit organisation supporting the women's game.

It was their first match since fleeing Afghanistan, and while it lacked international recognition it was facilitated by Cricket Australia and supported by local government officials.

'CLOSING THE DOOR'

Afghanistan has an established men's team which enjoys ICC funding despite human rights groups calling on the governing body to suspend the nation's membership and ban them from playing in international cricket.

Australia and other countries refuse to play the Afghanistan men's team in bilateral series citing deteriorating human rights for women in the county, where female sport has been crushed.

Since returning to power in 2021 the Taliban have restricted women's access to education and work, curbed their movement and forced them to cover their faces and bodies.

The Taliban say they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law and local customs.

The ICC said it will work with the Indian, Australian and England cricket boards to set up a taskforce aimed at sustaining the Afghan women's cricket careers but steered clear of acknowledging the players' hopes of recognition.

It declined to comment on whether there was a pathway to recognition for them.

Sapan said no cricketers from the Afghanistan men's squad had reached out to congratulate the women over the funding pledge.

But that was understandable given the politics involved, she added.

"It's difficult. We know about the Afghanistan situation. We know about the cricket situation in Afghanistan because, you know, the Taliban don't want Afghanistan cricket board to support the women's team," she said.

"If they support the women's team they might not be able to continue (playing) their matches and it will be like closing the cricket board door for all men."