After the Taliban's rule over Afghanistan, they made strict protocols that women from Afghanistan would not play any sports. This rule impacted the national Afghanistan Women's team as they had to leave the country to practice the sport they loved the most. It was the year 2021 when the Taliban banned women's sports in the country. Since then, the women have been trying ways to gather funding and sponsorships, but nothing has been positive for them. In the year 2023, they formally requested the ICC to create their refugee team based in Australia.
Afghanistan is the only full-time playing nation with no women's team, due to the strong implications laid on them by the Taliban. Many families got displaced after the Taliban took over Afghanistan. 19 Afghanistan women cricketers are in Australia currently, and they also played an exhibition match in January 2025 against the charity team, Cricket without Borders. The ICC has initiated support for Afghan Women Cricketers who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban's control. This initiative will include direct funding and professional coaching, ensuring the growth of these players.
Also, ICC stated that this support is not only for these 19 players but for all those Afghan women all around the globe who want to participate in the sport. ICC has prepared a separate funding mechanism to fund these players. Cricketing boards like Cricket Australia (CA), England Cricket Board (ECB), and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have supported this initiative by the ICC and will participate by providing financial assistance. These 3 boards give more than 50% of the revenue to the ICC, so support from these boards will give more benefits to the team.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) will continue to fund only male players, and female players from Afghanistan will be funded by the ICC with the support from CA, ECB, and BCCI. Also, the quality of coaching will be increased under this initiative, and the players will get the exposure they lacked before.
Afghanistan Women XI will now play more and more exhibition matches and will improve their performance. This is just the beginning of entering the biggest stage that is International Cricket. However, there are possibilities that the women's team might never play International Cricket, as the ICC needs permission from the board to let a national team play. If we consider the Talibans, they will never let women play for their country.
This support from the ICC is showing that the ICC encourages talents from all around the world and also supports inclusivity in sports.
About the Author
Advait Kadam is a sports writer at Vygr Media, specializing in cricket coverage and match analysis. With a background in Sports Management and a passion for storytelling, he brings sharp insights and fresh perspectives to every game.
Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Vygr’s views.
With inputs from agencies
Image Source: Multiple agencies
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