Hockley hopeful of Afghanistan women’s match becoming a beacon of hope

Nick Hockley, the chief executive of Cricket Australia (CA), believes that the exhibition match featuring the Afghanistan women’s cricket team in Melbourne will serve as a “real beacon of hope” for the females of the country.

The Afghanistan women’s cricket team, now settled in Melbourne and Canberra after the Taliban takeover, will play a T20 match against a Cricket Without Borders XI at the Junction Oval in Melbourne on Thursday morning, followed by the day-night Women’s Ashes Test at the MCG later in the afternoon.

Hockley also revealed that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is eager to host the Afghanistan women’s team for future matches.

“I think this is a first step. We’ve got colleagues from the ECB coming out for the women’s Ashes, and there are conversations happening to support from England as well as from Australia. So I think the first piece is awareness,” said Hockley. “But I think it’s going to be such an exciting day on Thursday, and my hope is that it promotes lots of conversations, becomes an annual thing, and ultimately, this team is able to compete on the international stage as they wish.”

He added, “I don’t think any of us can comprehend what they’ve been through moving to a new country in such difficult circumstances, not speaking the language. I’m just inspired by their resilience, their love for the game, and hopefully, this game raises awareness, a real beacon of hope.”

Hockley also recalled a moment when he witnessed the Afghanistan women’s team players receiving their jerseys. “I was privy to a moment where they got to see their playing shirts for the first time with their names and numbers on the back, and you can just see how much it means to them.”

“So I really hope this is kind of the first step of a really successful journey for this group, but also that this match shines a light on the fact that in places around the world, not every woman and girl has a chance to play.”

So far, Australia has not played bilateral matches against Afghanistan since the decision last year, citing “deteriorating human rights for women and girls in the country under Taliban rule.” However, Australia has faced Afghanistan in ICC tournaments, which led to accusations of hypocrisy.

Addressing this, Hockley said, “We’re duty-bound under the terms of the arrangements for ICC events to play all our scheduled fixtures, so it goes back to what can we do that’s in our control.”

“We’ve played Afghanistan in other ICC events, so we’ve been clear and consistent from the very outset. You have to draw a line somewhere, and I think we’ve made our stance pretty clear. It’s such a complex situation; it’s bigger than cricket. But hopefully, what you see this week is that we’re doing those things that are within our direct control to be able to make a positive difference.”