How 2023 Cricket World Cup became an Eid-like festival in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan

When journalists watch sports, they are not safe from 'homerism', a journalism term used to define the practice of projecting a larger-than-life image of a home team during news coverage. One of the principles of sports journalism, we were told back at the University of Delhi, is to stay away from homerism as much as possible. 

Honest admission: Unlike my colleagues who cover sports, I cannot stay away from homerism. But then I do not cover sports. So there comes the liberty to be absolutely emotional and be personally invested in a game of cricket.

But the current Cricket World Cup season is different. 

India is not the only team whose games are being watched with towering joy and optimism for their fiercely dominant wins. It has been Afghanistan's games as well that Indians have cheered on with as much enthusiasm as their home team this World Cup.

A kid holds Afghanistan's flag now banned by Taliban alongside another kid wearing Indian cricket team's blue jersey at New Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium during Afghanistan's match against England on Oct 15, 2023 | AFP

This is not just because India is 'home' to Afghan cricket due to country's cricket board's definitive support. But also because as the World Cup hosts, Indians saw Afghans as friends who matter especially against a shared foe such as Pakistan. 

Add to this the fact that Indian veteran cricketer Ajay Jadeja is the mentor of the Afghan side, and you get the picture.Indian cricket veteran Ajay Jadeja being conferred with handcrafted Afghan carpet and authentic Afghan Saffron alongside Sachin Tendulkar prior to Afghanistan's clash with Australia in Mumbai on Nov 7, 2023 | X/@ACBOfficials

Afghan Cricket's rise from the ashes

Afghanistan's wicketkeeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz used to be a cattle farmer till as recently as five years ago. Fazalhaq Farooqi, the left arm fast bowler, laboured building mud walls to buy his first professional cricket bat. 

Both Rashid Khan — the right arm leg spinner and Afghanistan cricket team's captain in T20I format — and the all-rounder Mohammad Nabi were once refugees in Pakistan.

Having risen from the ashes of the hardships of their homeland, captain Hashmatullah Shahidi's men managed to bring tearful joy to millions of their fellow Afghans living inside a nation ruled by repressive Taliban regime, as well as refugees, migrants and asylum seekers in foreign shores.

Cricket's joy amid Taliban's repression

During the course of last year, while reporting on discourse related to Afghan women's rights under Taliban rule, I came in touch with a number of brave Afghan women who continue to defy the regime in different ways. 

Every now and then, I reach out to them to report on Taliban's regressive decrees. 

But this World Cup season, we discussed cricket. Not during all the matches. But a flow of mutual congratulations remained constant every time India or Afghanistan won a match. A lot of times, while glued to TV screens and smartphones, we updated each other on unfavourable turns of the game for the team of the day. Throughout, we cheered for each other. 

Every time Afghanistan played a game under the flag now banned by Taliban, the mood inside Afghan drawing rooms was festive, they told me. Even Taliban officials blocked their calendars for the duration of Afghanistan's cricket contests. Contrast this with the worries expressed by the cricketers themselves as soon as Taliban took over Kabul two years ago, about the future of the game and the team.

When Afghanistan beat England by 69 runs on October 15, fireworks erupted in the skies of Afghan capital Kabul.  

A week later on October 23, when Afghanistan beat Pakistan by eight wickets, Kabul was euphoric. 

This time, more fireworks rose in the air. 

Kabul's skyline on the night on October 23 when Afghanistan beat Pakistan by 8 wickets | WION

"It was like Eid for us," Samim, 27, an Afghan studying Sociology in Austria, said while reflecting on the scenes of celebration back home in Jalalabad. 

"There were celebrations, there were parties. It was one of the rarest moments in our history when the whole nation was happy," Samim added.

Afghanistan's players greet spectators after their 8-wicket win against Pakistan during 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup one-day international (ODI) match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 23, 2023 | AFP

Admittedly, there were premature celebrations when Australia was 92-7 while chasing the massive target of 292 runs set by Afghanistan on November 7 in Mumbai's Wankhede stadium. That evening, the world witnessed one of the greatest batting performances of all time as Glenn Maxwell scored an unbeaten 201 runs off just 128 balls, and single-handedly guided Australia to an improbable victory. Australia's Glenn Maxwell scored an unbeaten 201 run-innings against Afghanistan on November 7 | AFP

That same evening, like millions of her fellow citizens, Zareena (name changed), a former law student forced to take a nursing course near Kabul — the only education women are allowed to have in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan — shed a few tears. 

But hardened by Taliban's regime that has turned her life upside down because she is born female, this was not a loss that could break her heart. 

Even in that loss, Afghanistan established their rise on the cricketing stage. 

The deserving consolation is their qualification in the Champions Trophy 2025.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)