Afghanistan Cricket Board says ODI series against Pakistan to go ahead as planned

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has said that the One-Day International (ODI) series against Pakistan will go ahead as planned next month, ending uncertainty over whether the schedule would need to be modified in the wake of the recent Taliban takeover.

The cricket board on Wednesday shared pictures of Afghan national players training for the upcoming series in Kabul through a social media post. In addition to two Asia Cups and the World Cup 2019 games, Afghanistan has played a solitary ODI against Pakistan in the UAE in 2012, which Pakistan won by seven wickets. The forthcoming series will be the first complete ODI series between the neighbouring countries.

“Afghanistan's national cricket team players are working and training in Kabul to prepare for the upcoming matches. The national cricket team will soon travel to Sri Lanka to play three international one-day matches against Pakistan,” the post caption read.

Doubts over Afghan-Pakistan cricket series after Taliban takeover

The training camp remained closed for two days following a volatile political situation in the capital city before resuming on Wednesday. The final stage of the preparation will kick off tomorrow before the Afghan cricket team travels to Sri Lanka next week.

Earlier, ACB Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Hamid Shinwari had also said that the series against Pakistan would not be affected by the change in government. While speaking to Press Trust of India earlier this week, Shinwari had maintained that the Taliban love cricket and will support their team.

“Taliban love cricket. They have supported us since the beginning, and I don't see any interference and expect support so that our cricket can move forward,” he said, assuring that the members of the national team and their families are safe under the Taliban regime.

Afghanistan announce squad for first full bilateral ODI series against Pakistan

The three-match ODI series, the International Cricket Council Super League, was originally scheduled in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) next month but was shifted to Sri Lanka as the UAE venues were unavailable due to the second leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

With an official schedule yet to be announced, the series is expected to happen in the first week of September with Pakistan due to return for a historic home series against New Zealand starting mid-September. All three games will be played in Hambantota.