Kashmir Digits

According to an Afghan cricket official Taliban will not will not interfere with the Afghan men’s national cricket team and will allow the flagship Twenty20 league, to continue.

The fate of much more modest women’s cricket programmes, however, remains unclear.

Despite the turmoil caused by the stunning fall of the Kabul government on Sunday, the board has confirmed a one-day series against Pakistan will go ahead in Sri Lanka next month and said it was expanding the “Shpageeza” Twenty20 league competition.

 “Taliban loves cricket. They have supported us since the beginning. They did not interfere in our activities,” ACB CEO Hamid Shinwari was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

“The Taliban don’t have any issue or problem with cricket, and they have told us that we can continue our work as planned,” said Afghanistan Cricket Board head of media operations Hikmat Hassan, adding that the team was ready for three one-day matches against Pakistan next month.

“We have completed our two training camps in Kabul and we have sponsors, a production team, and even the kit ready.”

Hassan also said the team should be able to play in the Twenty20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates in October-November.

Taliban fighters reportedly arrived at the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) headquarters in Kabul on Thursday. The members of the Taliban regime were accompanied by ex-cricketer Abdullah Mazari.

“We are confident we will be able to take part and will be preparing for it over the coming weeks. I don’t think there will be a problem,” Hassan said.

During their previous spell in power, the hardline Islamist movement banned most public entertainments but they have never had a particular problem with cricket, a sport many Afghans learned in refugee camps in Pakistan during the 1980s and 1990s.