Last Updated on 1 second ago by Charbel Coorey

Afghanistan’s cricketing rise has been one of the stories to behold in the last two decades. However, despite some memorable moments on the field, their board has been subject to its fair share of criticism especially since the Taliban regime retook control of the country in 2021.

Cricket Australia (CA) have maintained a clear stance of not playing bilateral games against Afghanistan and chooses not to associate with the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) in any capacity outside of ICC tournaments.

The Taliban’s treatment of women is source of global condemnation. With female cricket banned in Afghanistan, their women’s team have fled the country and now live and play in Australia. Moreover, there was a recent outrage on social media over the signing of a few international stars in the recently-concluded Afghanistan Premier League (APL) player draft and auction. A lot of fans felt that the participation of so many popular cricketers would mean neglecting human rights and promoting a league in a country that does not support women’s cricket.

The Afghan women’s team have been supported by CA in their journey to pursue their cricket careers. During an exclusive interview with Arvind Kalyana Krishnan during a Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) game in Melbourne for CricBlog, star player Shukria Noori spoke about the support she and her teammates have received from Australia’s cricketing board.

She also drew light on how the likes of Mel Jones and Emma Staples (Former Head of Diversity and Community Engagement at Cricket Victoria) have supported her throughout her career.

Shukria also stated that they do not just play for themselves, but also for the women in Afghanistan who aren’t allowed to play cricket. She is hopeful that the International Cricket Council (ICC) continues to support them post-2030 as well.

Shukria Noori interview: Mel Jones has been supporting us even before we came to Australia

Below is the entire conversation between Arvind Kalyana Krishnan and Shukria Noori in text and video format:

Arvind Kalyana Krishnan: We all know your story and how you came here. It’s very inspirational. So if you could talk about how Cricket Australia and the cricket fraternity in Australia has supported you and helped you to become better?

Shukria Noori: Yeah, (ever) since we came to Australia, they in no way stopped their support for us. Anything for men’s they do all that for women’s as well. And since I came here, everything they do for men’s, they do that for us as well.

Arvind Kalyana Krishnan: Also, we have heard a lot of stories about how Mel Jones, who’s over here as well, has helped you a lot. So if you can talk about her contributions and her role in your journey?

Shukria Noori: Yes, since we were in Afghanistan she started to support us and when we came here she in no way stopped supporting us. Whenever we go anywhere like a Darwin trip, England trip, India trip, she was with us. Not only Mel Jones, also Emma (Emma Staples) and also our coach. I mean, they’re so good with us…. every time.

Arvind Kalyana Krishnan: Now with the way you’ve been working on your game, I’ve seen how hard you practice. So what does the future hold for you? What are your future aspirations and future plans?

Shukria Noori: Yes, our plan for future is….. As back home, girls in Afghanistan…. We’re not only playing for us, but also for our home people. They’re not allowed to play like us, so it’s our opportunity in Australia. So we’re going to keep continuing for our plan until 2030…. And we’re not sure as ICC have have told us that they will support us until 2030 but hopefully it’s going to be more than that. Because we represent our people back home over here.