No ECB boycott, England vs Afghanistan match at ICC Champions Trophy to go as planned

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) won’t boycott the England vs. Afghanistan match at the ICC Champions Trophy later this year. Voices within England, including that of more than 160 politicians, want the ECB to boycott the game due to Afghanistan’s ruling government, the Taliban, due to ‘gender apartheid.’

It’s not just the ECB that’s facing pushback. South Africa Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie also wants a boycott. Therefore, Cricket South Africa (CSA), who like England placed in Group B of the ICC Champions Trophy, is under pressure to forfeit their match against Afghanistan as well.

England will play against Afghanistan in the ICC Champions Trophy

The ECB’s reply has remained the same. They will continue to support Afghanistan’s female cricketers, who have been in exile since the Taliban took control in 2021. Most of Afghanistan’s women’s cricket team have been seeking refuge in Australia and recently played their first match in nearly 4 years.

“We remain of the view that a coordinated international response by the cricketing community is the appropriate way forward and will achieve more than any unilateral action by the ECB in boycotting this match. We have also heard that for many ordinary Afghans, watching their cricket team is one of the few remaining sources of enjoyment. As such, we can confirm that we will play this fixture,” ECB chief executive Richard Gould wrote in a statement.

“We will continue to press the ICC to take further action, including ringfencing a meaningful portion of funding to support female players from Afghanistan to be able to access cricket. What is happening in Afghanistan is nothing short of gender apartheid. At a cricketing level, when women’s and girls’ cricket is growing rapidly around the world, it is heartbreaking that those growing up in Afghanistan are denied this opportunity,” he added.

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Why doesn’t the ECB boycott Afghanistan at ICC events?

The ECB, like all cricket boards, has control over who they play bilateral cricket with. That’s why they haven’t hosted Afghanistan at home even once. However, that isn’t the case at ICC events. You simply can’t just decide how to play or not at an ICC event.

If they wish to boycott Afghanistan at the ICC Champions Trophy, they’ll risk losing points, which would be their chance to win a trophy. For the exact same reasons, Cricket Australia (CA) also plays Afghanistan at ICC events but avoids them when it comes to bilateral cricket.