Afghanistan slam Australia's 'pathetic' boycott of ODI tour

A political row has erupted between the cricketers and cricket boards of Afghanistan and Australia following Australia’s “pathetic” decision to withdraw from an ODI tour due to the Taliban’s treatment of women.

Australia and Afghanistan were scheduled to play three ODIs on neutral territory in the United Arab Emirates in March but Cricket Australia (CA) scrapped the series after "extensive consultation", including talks with the Australian government.

This has provoked a furious response from the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), who released a spicy 450-word statement that condemned the “pathetic, unfair and unexpected” decision from Australia, but did not mention women or women’s cricket.

They were joined by their players, including captain Rashid Khan, who threatened to cease playing in the Big Bash League, where he has been a star draw for Adelaide Strikers since 2017. His team-mate Naveen-ul-Haq, who has played for Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder, went one step further, confirming that he is boycotting the ailing competition.

This is not the first time CA have withdrawn from fixtures against Afghanistan due to the Taliban’s influence. In 2021, CA cancelled the first men’s Test match between the countries, slated to be played in Hobart, because women did not have equal access to the sport in the country following the Taliban’s seizure of power in August that year.

The situation has developed since. Afghanistan's rulers last month imposed a ban on women attending universities. Girls have been banned from high school since March. They have also been excluded from parks and gyms.

"This decision follows the recent announcement by the Taliban of further restrictions on women's and girls' education and employment opportunities and their ability to access parks and gyms," said a spokesman for Cricket Australia.

"CA is committed to supporting growing the game for women and men around the world, including in Afghanistan, and will continue to engage with the Afghanistan Cricket Board in anticipation of improved conditions for women and girls in the country.

"We thank the Australian government for its support on this matter.”

As recently as last month, Rashid used his platform on social media to criticise the Taliban regime, but this time he took aim at CA.

“I am really disappointed to hear that Australia have pulled out of the series to play us in March,” he tweeted. “I take great pride in representing my country and we have made great progress on the world stage. This decision from CA sets us back on that journey. If playing vs Afghanistan is so uncomfortable for Australia then I wouldn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable with my presence in the BBL. Therefore, I will be strongly considering my future in that competition.”

When announcing his BBL boycott, Naveen tweeted that CA’s decision was “childish”, while star opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz accused Australia of “taking away the only happiness we have”.

He tweeted: “just read the news of Australia not playing the series against us. We should never mix politics with cricket & We are expecting the world to support Afg in this difficult situation rather then [sic] taking away the only one happiness we have. This is shocking & unacceptable act of CA”.

The ACB said it would “rethink” whether to allow its players to play in the BBL, and would be writing to the International Cricket Council (ICC) about the issue, which they described as “an unfortunate attempt to enter the realm of politics and politicize the sport”.

Afghanistan competed at the T20 World Cup in Australia – including playing against the hosts – last year.

ICC chief executive Geoff Allardice has said Afghanistan's lack of commitment to women's cricket is a “concern” for the sport's global governing body and that the matter will be discussed at its next board meeting.

"Our board has been monitoring progress since the change of regime," Allardice said. "It is a concern that progress is not being made in Afghanistan and it's something our board will consider at its next meeting in March. As far as we are aware, there isn't activity at the moment.”

The cancelled ODI series formed part of the ICC’s Super League, where the top eight teams automatically qualify for the 2023 World Cup. Australia have already qualified for the tournament.