Narrator: How did cricket become such a craze in Afghanistan, how did the players leave?

Cricket craze in Afghanistan: The ICC T-20 World Cup being co-hosted by West Indies and America has proved to be historic for Afghanistan. Afghanistan have shown their strength to the cricket world by making it to the semi-finals for the first time. The Afghanistan team first beat a great team like Australia in the Super-8 round and then beat Bangladesh to proudly make it to the last four. Both these teams are well above him in the rankings. Afghanistan’s success is significant given that the Taliban seized power in the country three years ago. Since then the country’s economy has collapsed badly. The situation there has gone from bad to worse for the common citizens. The whole country is happy with the team’s success in such a situation.

The Taliban was first banned, then lifted
There was a time when the Taliban banned all sports in Afghanistan. Anyone seen playing will be shot. But in the year 2000, the Taliban lifted this ban on cricket. The Taliban found plenty of entertainment in this game. Since then, whenever the Afghanistan cricket team played a major match or tournament, the Taliban were at the forefront of greeting them. The cricket craze became such that cricket matches were most watched in areas under Taliban control. Those who could not watch the match on TV listened to the commentary on the radio. Interestingly, most of the players playing in the national team come from these areas.

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Learned cricket in refugee camps in Pakistan
The Afghanistan team has many cricketers who lived in refugee camps in Pakistan with their parents and families during the country’s ongoing civil war. He was very young then. When he saw Pakistanis playing cricket, his interest in this game also increased. Later he started playing cricket himself. Afghans were still fond of cricket when British forces conquered the country in the 19th century, but it gradually died out. He got the true taste of the game in the refugee camps of Pakistan.

The Taliban also started enjoying cricket
Taj Malook Khan himself formed the Afghan Cricket Club in the 80s from the Kacha Gari refugee camp in Peshawar. A decade later, when Afghan nationals started returning to their country, they brought cricket with them. Initially the Taliban banned all sports. He believed that sports distract one from prayer. Later, the Taliban’s attitude towards cricket began to soften. Then came the period when Taliban fighters put aside their AK-47 guns for cricket. When Afghanistan qualified for the World Cup 2019, it shocked the entire country. This was the Taliban’s own way of celebrating a victory in cricket.

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Emphasis on cricket in rural areas
According to a report, cricket is a sport that even Taliban commanders enjoy. In the areas under their control, huge crowds of spectators gather to watch cricket matches. Surprisingly, there is no fighting during this period. All of them are fans of their country team and are very excited for it.

Cricket academies started opening
Ever since the cricket craze has grown in Afghanistan, cricket academies have started opening in various places. Children are seen playing cricket in villages and cities. However, due to the current situation in Afghanistan, foreign teams do not go to play there. In such a situation, the Afghanistan team made Greater Noida their base in India. After which his home ground shifted to Dehradun and finally Dubai. The reason behind Afghanistan’s success is that the Board of Control for Cricket in India has provided grounds and training infrastructure in neighboring Greater Noida and Dehradun. They play matches at neutral venues with foreign teams who don’t want to come to Afghanistan. He has also played a few matches in India with foreign teams.

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The victory was also celebrated in India
Afghan refugees and students living in India miss the country the most on two occasions: when their mother cooks biryani on Eid and when their favorite bowler Rashid Khan uproots the stumps. A large number of Afghan students study at Sharda University in Greater Noida. Obviously, he is thrilled with the success of the Afghan team. Now he is excited about the semi-final match. There was celebration at the homes of many Afghan refugees in Delhi’s Bhogal and Lajpat Nagar after their victories over the big teams in the Super-8. Even those who are not interested in cricket are ready to watch the semi-final match and chant for their country.

Tags: Afghanistan Cricket, Afghanistan Taliban News, Cricket World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, Taliban Afghanistan