When India face Sri Lanka in the opening match of the Women’s World Cup 2025 at the Assam Cricket Association (ACA) Stadium in Guwahati, the spotlight will not only be on the action on the field but also on a special group of spectators.
A number of Afghanistan’s women cricketers, who currently live in exile in Australia, will be present at the venue. While they are not officially recognized by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), they continue to participate in local leagues in Australia. For this occasion, they will attend only as spectators, marking one of the first steps to bring them closer to the global cricket community.
ACA Confirms Their Arrival
ACA President Taranga Gogoi confirmed the development, noting that more details would be provided by BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒇𝒈𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕,” 𝑮𝒐𝒈𝒐𝒊 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝑬𝑺𝑷𝑵𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒐.
Although no official ICC announcement has been made, the plan is believed to be part of a larger initiative introduced earlier this year.
ICC’s Quiet Support for Women’s Cricket in Afghanistan
In April, the ICC had announced a “dedicated task force” aimed at supporting Afghanistan’s female cricketers, focusing on mentorship and coaching. Funding was to come from the ICC and major cricket boards including the BCCI, ECB, and CA, although exact contributions were not disclosed.
The decision to bring exiled Afghan women to the World Cup was first discussed at the ICC’s annual conference in July. Initially, the idea included a training camp in Bengaluru, matches against Indian domestic sides, and attendance at several World Cup games. However, as things stand, the players may only be part of the opening fixture.
“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒅𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝑨𝒇𝒈𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏,” 𝒂𝒏 𝑰𝑪𝑪 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅.
Since the Taliban takeover in 2021, Afghan women have faced widespread restrictions, being barred from schools, universities, and most public activities. Although the ACB had contracted 25 women’s players in 2020, it cannot officially recognize a national women’s team under the current circumstances.
Exiled Players Continue Their Journey
Most of the former Afghanistan women’s players now reside in Australia, while a few are based in the UK and Canada. Some players could not make the trip to India due to visa complications, but many were part of an exhibition game earlier this year, featuring an Afghanistan XI against Cricket Without Borders.
Their presence at the Women’s World Cup opener in Guwahati will mark a symbolic step for Afghan women’s cricket, showing resilience and hope despite the challenges they continue to face.
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