Afghan Women’s Team first recipients of MCC Global Refugee Cricket Fund
The Afghan Women’s Team will be the first recipients of the MCC Global Refugee Cricket Fund, it was announced on Friday.
Marylebone Cricket Club and the MCC Foundation have launched the fund to help those in cricket who have been displaced due to conflict.
The Afghan Women’s Team were forced into exile from their native Afghanistan after a nationwide return of the Taliban to power.
Since returning to government the group have imposed strict and vicious rules on women, both in public and private, altering basic human rights of over 14m women.
Schooling for women has stopped while cricket has been banned.
The men’s team are still allowed to play, operating out of the United Arab Emirates, despite ICC rules stating member unions must have both a men’s and women’s team in active existence.
An unofficial Afghanistan Women’s XI played at the Junction Oval in Melbourne on Thursday in an exhibition match; their first game since the Taliban takeover.
Vital MCC fund
Rob Lynch, interim chief executive and secretary of MCC, said: “The Global Refugee Cricket Fund represents a vital step forward in our mission to use cricket as a force for good.
“Cricket has the power to inspire, unite, and empower, and through this initiative, we aim to bring hope and opportunity to those who need it most.
“We are proud to build on the MCC Foundation’s incredible legacy and extend our support to displaced communities worldwide.”
The Global Refugee Cricket Fund will raise funds, with the help of a £100,000 donation from the England and Wales Cricket Board, for Pitch Our future, who are helping Afghan women in Australia.
There have been calls from UK parliamentarians for England’s men’s team to boycott their upcoming match against Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy next month.
But those calls have fallen on deaf ears, with some fearing that a boycott from just the one match against Afghanistan could trigger a terror response from the Taliban at another of the matches – which are taking place in Pakistan and the UAE.
Added Clare Connor, deputy chief executive of the ECB: “The cricket community must take action, to support the brave Afghan women, and to give hope that cricket can be a sport for any woman or girl.
“We hope the launch of the Fund will inspire other cricketing organisations to support this cause, and to unlock cricket’s power to unite communities around the globe.”