In a country where the sight of bullets and sound of gun-shots is as common as the camel in a desert, cricket seems to have united Afghanistan.
By Shashank Kishore
In a society which has often been ravaged by internal turmoil due to political instability and terrorism, their rise up the ranks on the cricketing front is indeed heart-warming.
To play against the big boys, in this case Pakistan, less than three years after being granted ODI status is no mean achievement. It speaks volumes of the resolve and resilience shown by the country's cricketers, who at most times have lived with the constant threat of the Taliban, an outfit notorious for its ban on all kind of sports which disturbed the prayer timings.
For them to unite at one of the country's finest hour in their sporting history, speaks volumes of what cricket means to the people of Afghanistan. Although, they did go down to Pakistan in the only match scheduled against a Test nation for quite a while, their performances certainly gladdened the heart of cricket followers.
For starters, shifting their base to Sharjah seems to have helped them take the first leap towards becoming a potent force. While the facilities in the UAE have been conducive to building the team, it has given them the liberty and freedom to express themselves on the playing field, a character which was evident in the game against Pakistan.
For most, it was undoubtedly the biggest moment of their lives, despite first emerging on the big stage at the ICC World T20 in 2010. The fact that some of their players like Hamid Hassan and Karim Sadiq were considered worthy enough to be a part of the the ICC Associate XI in a warm-up against England means that quality hasn't gone unnoticed.
Along the way, the PCB, which itself has faced a lot of administrative upheaval due to finances and lack of cricket in the country, also needs to be commended for helping their younger brothers from across the border. By inducting them into the domestic league and facilitating their players to train at the National Academy in Lahore, has increased the goodwill, which in turn indicates good signs for Afghan cricket.
The fact that a domestic Afghan league is on the anvil, with teams from 28 out of the 34 provinces set to compete, things are certainly moving in the right direction. With calls for the sport being made compulsory in the school curriculum - is a testimony to the fact that the Afghans consider cricket to be their next big hope.
With support from the full members and the ICC, this could be a perfect story of hope and emergence despite all the odds!
In a society which has often been ravaged by internal turmoil due to political instability and terrorism, their rise up the ranks on the cricketing front is indeed heart-warming.
To play against the big boys, in this case Pakistan, less than three years after being granted ODI status is no mean achievement. It speaks volumes of the resolve and resilience shown by the country's cricketers, who at most times have lived with the constant threat of the Taliban, an outfit notorious for its ban on all kind of sports which disturbed the prayer timings.
For them to unite at one of the country's finest hour in their sporting history, speaks volumes of what cricket means to the people of Afghanistan. Although, they did go down to Pakistan in the only match scheduled against a Test nation for quite a while, their performances certainly gladdened the heart of cricket followers.
For starters, shifting their base to Sharjah seems to have helped them take the first leap towards becoming a potent force. While the facilities in the UAE have been conducive to building the team, it has given them the liberty and freedom to express themselves on the playing field, a character which was evident in the game against Pakistan.
For most, it was undoubtedly the biggest moment of their lives, despite first emerging on the big stage at the ICC World T20 in 2010. The fact that some of their players like Hamid Hassan and Karim Sadiq were considered worthy enough to be a part of the the ICC Associate XI in a warm-up against England means that quality hasn't gone unnoticed.
Along the way, the PCB, which itself has faced a lot of administrative upheaval due to finances and lack of cricket in the country, also needs to be commended for helping their younger brothers from across the border. By inducting them into the domestic league and facilitating their players to train at the National Academy in Lahore, has increased the goodwill, which in turn indicates good signs for Afghan cricket.
The fact that a domestic Afghan league is on the anvil, with teams from 28 out of the 34 provinces set to compete, things are certainly moving in the right direction. With calls for the sport being made compulsory in the school curriculum - is a testimony to the fact that the Afghans consider cricket to be their next big hope.
With support from the full members and the ICC, this could be a perfect story of hope and emergence despite all the odds!
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