Australia postpones Afghanistan Test until situation is clearer

MELBOURNE: Cricket Australia (CA) confirmed on Friday (Nov 5) that it has postponed the Afghanistan Test in Hobart scheduled for Nov 27 until the situation regarding the women's game in the South Asian nation becomes clearer.

CA had said in September that it would scrap the Test if the Taliban government, which took power in August, did not allow women and girls to play the sport.

"Following extensive consultation with relevant stakeholders, Cricket Australia and the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) have agreed to postpone the inaugural men's Test match against Afghanistan," CA said in a statement.

"CA is committed to support growing the game for women and men in Afghanistan and around the world, however, given the present uncertainty, CA felt it necessary to postpone the Test match until a later time when the situation is clearer."

The ACB said that the postponement followed an "agreement between the boards".

"We will discuss and decide how and when to go ahead with the Test in our next meeting," ACB chief executive Naseeb Khan tweeted.

"This also helps us to work more and prepare the team better for the historic Test match."

Afghanistan's remarkable rise in cricket in recent years has been the sport's biggest fairytale, but the strife-torn nation risks isolation following the Taliban takeover.

Taliban officials have said that they will not repeat the harsh rule of their previous government, which banned most girls' education and forbade women from going out in public without a male guardian.

The ACB has requested the support of other full members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) as it looks to retain its place in global cricket.

Afghanistan's status is set to be discussed at an ICC meeting after the ongoing T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

World governing body ICC was not immediately available to comment.

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