Cricket Australia to Threatening to Withdraw from Afghanistan Test Match
Australia’s cricket team have threatened to pull out of a scheduled test match against Afghanistan due to the Taliban’s banning of women’s sport. The move was made by the Aussie cricketing hierarchy who unequivocally stated that the scheduled test match series against Afghanistan would be canceled unless the ruling Taliban regime reverse their ban of women playing sport in the Asian country.
The withdrawal of ISAF forces from Afghanistan last month evoked a swift takeover by the Taliban. Now in control of the government, the Taliban are initiating many draconian measures on their people, including the ban on participation in sport by women. ©ejbartennl/Pixabay
The match is due to begin on November 27, and it would be the very first match played between Australia and Afghanistan. The team in Australia has taken a moral position on the geopolitical unrest manifesting in Afghanistan. According to reliable sources within the country, the Taliban plan to abolish women’s participation in sport, along with eroding many of the civil liberties and rights that women in Afghanistan have been able to access over the last several years. Australia has definitively stated the match will be canceled unless a reversal on this policy is made.
A representative for the Taliban-controlled government of Afghanistan, Mr Wasiq, told reporters that it was not necessary for women to have the freedom to participate in cricket or any other sport. Mr Wasiq furthered his reasoning by claiming women who participate in sport are at risk of having to uncover their faces and body. According to Mr Wasiq this would be a major violation of the religious laws that the local population is now held to.
This direct violation and contradiction of Australian values was clearly a step to far for the sports stars of the country. Whilst terrible atrocities sadly happen in many parts of the world, the nature of the female ban on the sport in Afghanistan is a sickening blow to the girls and women of the nation. Many of them have enjoyed relatively normal lives with a degree of liberty until the recent US withdrawal transpired.
Cricket Australia Trying to Drive Women’s Cricket Around the World
As a non-political institution, it is sometimes difficult to justify boycotting certain fixtures or events for a political or moral reason. But in this case, where the problem is in a direct objection to the mission statement of Cricket Australia – to grow women’s cricket around the world – the stance is brought into a sobering context. This cause is incredibly important to the Cricket Australia board, and they feel obliged to take a stance against this rhetoric.
Cricket Australia has made clear that one of its core principles is to foster the game of cricket at all levels, for both women and men. If the reports in Afghanistan regarding the ban on women’s sport are substantiated, then the organization would have no choice but to pull out of the match. With things still slightly fluid and unsure regarding the rules that will be implemented in Afghanistan, there is a struggle to see how this will pan out.
The match that the team is threatening to cancel is due to be played in Hobart on the 27th of November. With so much uncertainty surrounding the actual ability of the teams to turn up to the game in the first place, it is highly unlikely this team will go ahead. With Afghanistan in such a difficult spot financially and facing a terrible period of social upheaval, the country’s cricket players likely have bigger worries on their plate than training to play against the Australians, that is the sad reality.
Sudden Change of Stance from Cricket Australia
Just last week, Cricket Australia had confirmed that the match on November 27 was going ahead as scheduled. Plans had already been set in motion to bring the Afghanis into Australia, and accommodation training facilities have been reserved for the squad. But at the beginning of this week September 6, it became clear that problems surrounding the new hardline policies of the Taliban may derail the game.
Given the lack of awareness from the Taliban regime on how out of touch these hardline policies truly are, the Australian cricket team has been left with no other choice than to damage the ability of the men’s team to engage at the highest levels of the sport too. With the threat of the cancellation looming over the Afghanistan cricket team, the hope remains that they will change their harsh ban on women’s cricket.
The Australian statement set the tone for the powerful stance the group will take against this bigotry and insulting behavior. They have called upon the international community and the sport governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC) to make a stand and speak out against this appalling behavior. The ICC has already confirmed this topic will be a priority discussion on the agenda of their next meeting.
Despite the hard market environment of the country, there has been significant progress in maintaining a healthy and progressive cricket ecosystem in Afghanistan. Since their introduction to the organization in 2007, they have been an active participant in international cricket at both men’s and women’s football.
