Afghan women's practice sessions protected by barbed wire
Afghanistan’s first-ever women’s cricket team are practising for their first international tournament on a concrete pitch in a park where men are banned, surrounded by walls topped with barbed wire, AFP reports from Kabul
Dustin Silgardo
25-Feb-2013
Afghanistan’s first-ever women’s cricket team are practising for their first international tournament on a concrete pitch in a park where men are banned, surrounded by walls topped with barbed wire, AFP reports from Kabul. Although many women in Afghanistan still rarely leave their homes, around 600 women play cricket in Kabul, according to officials, AFP say
While the team’s players stress that their families and friends support them, they say they often encounter opposition from men who think they should not be taking part. “The men of Afghanistan think sport is bad for the girls. They say they can’t play football, volleyball. We hope to bring hope to other people,” says 16-year-old bowler Tabasom. “When we exercise, cricket or any sport, we’re complete humans, regardless of gender.”
Dustin Silgardo is a former sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo