The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has responded to calls to boycott the England vs. Afghanistan match at the ICC Champions Trophy. For the uninformed, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is being pressured into refusing to take the field against the Afghans on February 26 in Lahore. More than 160 politicians in England wrote to the ECB, asking them to give a cold shoulder due to ‘gender apartheid’ happening in the Middle Eastern nation.
ECB doesn’t cave to pressure from inside
The pressure is also mounting elsewhere. South Africa Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie also agrees with the calls for a boycott. However, the ECB isn’t planning to do so. Richard Gould, chief executive of the English board, has criticised the Taliban government’s treatment of women and for disbanding the Afghanistan women’s cricket team but has confirmed that the England men’s team will play Afghanistan at the ICC Champions Trophy.
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ACB welcomes ECB’s stance
ACB CEO Naseeb Khan is happy that the ECB isn’t punishing them or the decision of their government. “We welcome the statement from the England Cricket Board. Our goal has always been to compete against full-member nations not only in ICC and major tournaments but also in bilateral events as well. We have operated under challenging circumstances, yet our progress would not have been possible without the unwavering support of member countries, the ICC, and the ACC,” Naseeb told Cricbuzz.
“We firmly believe that political matters should be resolved through diplomatic channels or on the table, not on the cricket ground, and must be kept separate from sports. As a cricket board, our jurisdiction is limited to the game itself, just as it is for other cricket boards worldwide. The Afghan nation has the right to cherish and celebrate cricket as a source of joy and unity after years of hardship,” Naseeb Khan added.
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