Ireland to host five ODIs against Afghanistan, risking ECB ire

Cricket Ireland has agreed to host Afghanistan for a five-match one-day international series in Northern Ireland starting on Wednesday, with the first ODI scheduled at Bready, a decision that could provoke disapproval from the England and Wales Cricket Board. The ECB refuses to play Afghanistan in bilateral fixtures because of the Taliban regime and is understood to be unhappy about Ireland proceeding with the series.

The ECB’s stance is rooted in concerns about the treatment of women under the Taliban, a position summed up by ECB chair Richard Thompson who described the situation as “gender apartheid,” and it is backed by the UK government. Cricket Ireland has taken a different approach, developing closer ties with the Afghanistan Cricket Board and arranging five ODIs to be played in Northern Ireland this month. As part of a reciprocal agreement, Ireland will travel to the United Arab Emirates next March to play one Test, three ODIs and three T20 fixtures against Afghanistan.

England’s previous interactions with Afghanistan have been contentious: the ECB approved a one-off Champions Trophy group game against Afghanistan in Lahore last year after a specially convened board meeting, a move that drew criticism from a cross-party group of 160 MPs who wrote a joint letter urging the ECB to withdraw the fixture. The ECB now says it will not schedule any bilateral cricket against Afghanistan.

Alongside its refusal to arrange bilateral men’s series, the ECB has taken steps to support Afghan women cricketers this summer, organising a tour of England for the Afghan Refugee Women’s team and inviting them to the T20 World Cup final at Lord’s. Those actions contrast with the board’s policy on the men’s side and reflect separate engagement with women’s representatives displaced from Afghanistan.

The Afghanistan women’s players fled the country after the Taliban retook control in 2021, with the majority relocating to Australia, and the Taliban subsequently enforced a ban on female sport. Afghanistan remain the only ICC full member not to operate a women’s cricket programme, but the International Cricket Council has not banned them.

Several other cricket boards have taken positions similar to the ECB’s: Australia, South Africa and New Zealand refuse to play Afghanistan in bilateral series. Ireland has joined nations including West Indies and Zimbabwe, together with the four Asian ICC full members, in granting Afghanistan fixtures this year.

Relations between the ECB and Cricket Ireland have been strained at times over fixtures and scheduling. England declined an invitation to join a proposed new Euro Nations Cup involving Scotland, the Netherlands and Italy next year because of a congested calendar, sent a second-string men’s team for a three-match T20 series in Ireland last September and currently have no more men’s matches scheduled in the calendar; England’s women will host Ireland in a three-match ODI series next month.

Ireland’s immediate confirmed next engagement with Afghanistan is the reciprocal UAE tour next March, which comprises one Test, three ODIs and three T20 matches as specified in the agreement between the two boards.