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With the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy being the next major assignment, a group of more than 150 politicians have called for a stern step amid the ongoing Taliban regime’s assault. Afghanistan, which is currently governed under the Taliban regime, have got several backlash amid the assault on women’s rights.
In the wake of the same, over 150 British politicians have called on the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to boycott the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 match against Afghanistan, which is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, February 26 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Notably, England and Afghanistan have been grouped in Group B alongside Australia and South Africa for the marquee tournament.
ECB urged to boycott Champions Trophy match against Afghanistan over assault on women’s rights
The massive move from the politicians come after a wide cross party group from the House of Commons and House of Lords, including the reform leader Nigel Farage and former leader of the Labour party Jeremy Corbyn called the ECB “to speak out against the horrific treatment of women and girld in Afghanistan under the Taliban rule.”
It is to be noted that while the Afghanistan men’s cricket team is allowed to compete by the ICC, the women’s cricket team hasn’t played any cricket match since the Taliban regime came into power. Seeing the wide cross among the parties in the UK parliament, ECB CEO Richard Gould also strongly responded in the matter adding, "The ECB strongly condemns the treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime.”
"The ICC Constitution mandates that all member nations are committed to the growth and development of women's cricket. In line with this commitment, the ECB has maintained its position of not scheduling any bilateral cricket matches against Afghanistan,” he further added. "While there has not been a consensus on further international action within the ICC, the ECB will continue to actively advocate for such measures. A coordinated, ICC-wide approach would be significantly more impactful than unilateral actions by individual members," he opined.
It is to be noted that Afghanistan men’s cricket team has been a force to reckon with in the recent years. The team beat England and Pakistan in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, and then decimated the likes of Australia to reach the semifinals of T20 World Cup in 2024. They are currently ranked eighth in the ICC Rankings and have qualified for the ICC Champions Trophy, which will be played from February 19 onwards in Pakistan and the UAE.
