Rashid Khan's Appeal: Keep Politics Out of Sports

Afghanistan, a nation scarred by war and political turmoil, finds joy in cricket. Despite facing many hardships and limited support due to governmental and political instability, the Afghans’ profound love for cricket has propelled them far in a short time.

Even as Afghanistan has made great strides in cricket, they've faced obstacles along the way. Last year, Australia canceled a previously scheduled ODI series against Afghanistan. Cricket Australia made this decision in protest against the Taliban’s increasing restrictions on women's and children's education following their rise to power.

This marks the second cancellation of a bilateral series with Afghanistan by Australia in two years. In 2021, Australia canceled a solitary Test in Hobart due to the Taliban’s controversial policies regarding women.

Despite canceling bilateral series, Australia faced Afghanistan in the World Cup, where the Afghans achieved a long-awaited victory. This victory is seen by many as a form of protest. When asked about this in the post-match press conference, Afghan captain Rashid Khan responded:

“If we can play in the World Cup, why not in bilateral series? We are sportsmen; we love the game. Our people love the game. Cricket is the only source of joy in our country. It gives our people a chance to celebrate. If that too is taken away, I don’t know what will remain in Afghanistan. If you go anywhere in the world now and say you are from Afghanistan, they will mention a cricketer. If that happiness is taken away from us, it will be difficult.”

Rashid also emphasized that cricket cannot solve all problems: “As cricketers, we can only talk about cricket. We like to play against any team. This is how our cricket will improve. If I had a solution... I don’t know what it would be.”

Rashid Khan, who knows little outside cricket, understands the importance of playing against major teams for the development of Afghan cricket. He stated:

“I don’t understand much about government or politics. I don’t like it either. I just know that we want to play against big teams. We want to travel the world and play. When I go to play in the Big Bash in Australia, the fans there love me so much. When I played against Australia in the 2022 World Cup in Adelaide, I received more support than the Australians. Even when my father passed away in 2019, I was in Australia. The love I received there made me feel like family.”

Rashid Khan requests to keep politics out of sports: “Cricket is not a solution here. Politics should not be mixed with sports. If there is another solution, then do that.”