ICC’s initiative to assist Afghan women cricket players will be financed in part by the ECB, CA, and BCCI.
Funding for the ICC’s support plan for Afghan women cricket players in exile will come from the ICC, BCCI, ECB, and CA; the Afghanistan Cricket Board’s (ACB) yearly payments will not be used. The program to help the nation’s displaced women cricket players, which will involve coaching and mentorship, “will be constituted through a dedicated fund,” according to an ICC spokesman, and the ACB will still receive its full amount from the ICC.
The idea of ring-fencing a portion of the ACB’s share of the ICC’s revenue allocations for women’s cricket was considered last year, but it was never implemented. Due to the harsh limitations placed on women’s rights following the Taliban’s retake of power in Afghanistan in 2021, the ACB is the only Full Member board that does not field a women’s squad.
Following their board meeting in Zimbabwe this weekend, the ICC unveiled their most recent plan, marking the first time in four years that the global governing body of cricket has made an effort to interact with Afghanistan’s female players. Since the ACB is the only body that may ratify a women’s squad, it does not constitute formal recognition nor does it pave the way for Afghanistan to field one. Rather, the ICC wants to collaborate with Afghan women cricket players to give them access to the sport and money for additional schooling.
“A team is not chosen for Afghanistan by the ICC. Instead, the spokesperson stated, “We are dedicated to tackling the intricacies of the matter and identifying a resolution that aligns with the ICC’s legal and constitutional structure.”
The 19 Afghan cricket players who currently reside in Australia will not be the only ones included in the ICC’s effort; rather, “the plan is to include all displaced Afghan women cricketers regardless of their location.”
A few of the 25 players that the ACB initially signed In 2020, before the Taliban took power, reside in the UK and Canada. The ICC will receive the names of all the former contracted players from the organisation Pitch Our Future, which was established earlier this year for the 19 Afghan cricket players living in Australia. These players will then undergo “an accreditation process administered in collaboration with the ICC member boards,” according to a report published by ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday, in order to receive the initiative’s benefits.
Following the appointment of a task force by the ICC to oversee the assistance program, the specifics of training camps and exhibition matches will be finalised in the upcoming weeks. With a three-year budget and plans for events like a trip to the Women’s World Cup 2025, Pitch Our Future hopes to collaborate with the ICC. They have already organised a match between an Afghan Women’s XI and the charity Cricket Without Borders on January 30 in Melbourne to introduce Afghanistan’s female cricket players to the game they love.
Through their support of Pitch Our Future, CA has already helped the Afghan cricket players, and now they will join the ECB and BCCI in providing financial support. These three boards collectively receive almost 51% of the ICC’s yearly revenue, of which 38.5 percent comes from the BCCI.
