Taliban Won’t Interfere With Cricketing Activities: Afghanistan Cricket Board’s CEO

Afghanistan Cricket Board’s CEO Hamid Shinwari has stated that the Taliban are unlikely to interfere in the country’s cricketing matter. He said that they have always loved the sport and will continue to support the game’s development.

Taliban has currently taken over the political scene in Afghanistan. Speaking on the matter to PTI, Hamid Shinwari maintained that the sport will continue to thrive the way it has been doing so far.

“Taliban loves cricket. They have supported us since the beginning. They did not interfere in our activities. I don’t see any interference and expect support so that our cricket can move forward. We have got an active chairman, I remain CEO until further notice.”

“It can be said that cricket flourished during the Taliban era. It is also a fact that many of our players practiced in Peshawar and they made the sport mainstream in Afghanistan,” he stated.

Shinwari said that things had resumed their normal flow after the Taliban settled in at the helm. The change in regime has already been adjusted to by the people, as per the CEO. He also assured that the players and their families are safe.

“The good thing is that we are heading towards normalcy. The people have started working. We will resume our office from tomorrow and the national camp which was underway ahead of the Pakistan series in Sri Lanka will also resume after a two-day break with the change in regime.”

“Other than four or five players who are playing overseas the rest are all in Kabul. Like I said, they are safe and doing fine. The BCCI is also keeping an eye on the developments and is hoping to see participation of Afghan players in the Indian Premier League,” Shinwari mentioned.

“We don’t see any cricketing activity suffering with the change of regime” – Hamid Shinwari on Afghanistan Cricket

Shinwari went on to mention that nothing can be confirmed when it came to the participation of the Afghan players in the upcoming second leg of the IPL. He also hoped to establish stronger ties with the BCCI in order to boost the country’s finances.

“We don’t see any cricketing activity suffering with the change of regime. It is too early to comment but we are keeping a watch. For us, nothing changes and we expect Rashid and other Afghan players would be part of IPL. We want to establish regular bilateral cricket ties with all cricketing giants including BCCI which has always been there for us,” Shinwari expressed.

Before concluding, Shinwari pointed out that the bilateral series that have been scheduled will go ahead as per plans. Also, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, and Mujeeb Rahman, who are part of franchises in the IPL, have been given NOC’s by the cricketing board.

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