Afghanistan may be barred from competing in the T20 World Cup 2021 in the UAE if they are requested to compete underneath the Taliban flag. The competition is set to begin on 17th October, and the ICC has been expecting an explanation from Afghan cricket. The 16 teams taking part in the tournament must present the flags under which they will compete, AFG Likely To Face T20-WC Sack if they play under Taliban Flag.
The Taliban seized control in Afghanistan in August, and the country’s cricket has been in disarray ever since. Afghanistan will face Australia in a one-off Test commencing 27th November at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart. Unfortunately, the game has become unclear. Cricket Australia has decided to pull out unless the Taliban changes its attitude on women’s cricket.
Hamid Shinwari, the Afghanistan Cricket Board’s chief executive, was recently fired, and Naseeb Zadran Khan took his position. It has been revealed that the Taliban played a significant part in making the final decision. Although it has not been established which flag the Afghan cricket team would be required to play under at the World Cup, the ICC is keeping a close eye on the situation.
ICC is expected to have a meeting in November to examine the country’s participation
According to The Telegraph, the apex cricket body may schedule a special meeting to consider Afghanistan’s destiny in the multi-nation competition if they opt to participate under the Taliban flag. The board members might then vote the Asian team out of the tournament during the meeting. Afghanistan is slated to play their 1st game.
According to sources, the ICC has not yet decided who will succeed for Afghanistan if they are kicked out of the competition. The ICC is expected to have a meeting in November to examine the country’s participation. According to ICC rules, every full-member cricketing nation must have a women’s team. Afghanistan, on the other hand, was excluded from the regulation.
Afghanistan is now one of the ICC’s 12 full members. To prohibit them, 12 of the 17 members of the ICC board of directors would have to agree against them. The Afghans qualified for the World Cup as one of the top 8 T20I teams.
