Funding Set For Displaced Afghanistan Women Cricketers, But Questions Remain

Afghanistan women cricketers will receive support from cricket's governing body (Photo by MARTIN ... More KEEP/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images

Amid mounting pressure, the International Cricket Council has announced a dedicated fund and high-performance program for Afghanistan women cricketers forced to flee their war-torn country since the Taliban’s bloody takeover in 2021.

But as I recently flagged, there will be no sanctions slapped on the Afghanistan Cricket Board. That means the men’s team will continue playing international cricket despite vocal opposition from powerhouses Australia and England.

The Afghanistan women’s situation has been cricket’s thorniest and saddest issue, with their players displaced and most of them have ended up in Australia as refugees.

In a major tonic, the welcome funding news was announced during the ICC’s quarterly meetings in Zimbabwe.

The ICC will partner with cricket’s three most powerful and richest countries - India, England and Australia - to “establish a dedicated fund to provide direct monetary assistance, ensuring these cricketers have the resources they need to continue pursuing the game they love”.

Afghanistan played in Melbourne in January (Photo by MARTIN KEEP/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images

“This will be complemented by a robust high-performance programme offering advanced coaching, world-class facilities, and tailored mentorship to help them reach their full potential," the ICC said in a media release.

It is a major announcement and kick-starts the tenure of new chair Jay Shah, who is helming his first ICC meetings. As the former boss of Indian cricket, there has been cynicism over his ascension to running global cricket but the all-powerful Shah has shown that he can be an agent for change.

“In collaboration with our valued partners, we are proud to launch this task force and support fund, complemented by a comprehensive high-performance programme, to ensure displaced Afghan women cricketers can continue their journey in the sport,” Shah said.

“This initiative reflects our steadfast dedication to cricket’s global growth and its power to inspire unity, resilience, and hope.”

Jay Shah is the new chair of the ICC (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images) Getty Images

But questions remain. It is unknown how much funding will be committed and whether it will come out of Afghanistan’s distribution from the ICC.

Last year, as I reported, there was a push led by Australia to set aside a percentage of Afghanistan revenue to fund women’s cricket. But it failed to materialize due to the high cost of the Afghanistan men's team. They do not play cricket at home due to security issues and have been mostly based in the UAE and India.

It is also not known whether the Afghanistan women will be able to form a national team and compete against other nations. They did in January represent an Afghanistan Women’s XI that played against a Cricket Without Borders team in Melbourne, an event that further put the issue in the spotlight.

An Afghanistan Women's XI played in January (Photo by MARTIN KEEP/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images

There has been some public and internal pressure over sanctioning Afghanistan's cricket board, which is meddled by the government, and effectively ban the men's team from playing.

Afghanistan’s board receives about $17 million annually as part of the ICC’s revenue distribution model. But cricket’s power brokers do not have the appetite to halt the sport’s ultimate feel-good story, a national team that provides hope and inspiration to such a beaten-down nation.

It is a rise that has been heavily pushed by the ICC's marketers in a rare tale of cricket spreading beyond traditional borders.

The funding announcement is somewhat of a compromise from an under-pressure governing body, but will still be received with open arms from refugees so desperate to pursue the sport they fell in love with back in their homeland.

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