Two members of the exiled Afghanistan women’s cricket team will make their first appearance for Sydney University against Bankstown at St Pauls Oval on Sunday.
Bibi Nilab Stanikzai and Bunafsha were two of the 25 Afghan cricketers awarded central contracts by the Afghanistan Cricket Board in 2020. A year later, they were granted emergency visas by the Australian government following the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Most of the 25 Afghan players still live in Melbourne and Canberra, although two have since moved to Canada and one to England.
The Taliban has stripped Afghan women of essentially all of their fundamental human rights: all but the most basic education is forbidden, women may not appear in public unaccompanied by a man, and the right to work is strictly restricted. Upon its resumption of power, the Taliban also prohibited women’s sport, ostensibly on the basis that it could not be guaranteed that the players’ bodies and faces would remain fully covered at all times. The Afghan women cricketers were compelled to seek asylum because remaining at home exposed them to the risk of serious punishment simply because they played their sport.
Although the International Cricket Council has conferred full international status on the Afghanistan Women’s teams, it has not yet developed a coherent approach to the problems posed by the political situation in Afghanistan. The Afghanistan Cricket Board continues to operate in exile, and the women’s squad have not given up hope of returning to international competition.
Bibi Nilab Stanikzai and Bunafsha have been playing cricket in the ACT, and Stanikzai has turned in several consistent all-round efforts for Tuggeranong this season. University coach Alex Blackwell said “Bunafsha and Nilab’s story is incredibly moving. In Australia, women and girls are free to pursue sports and education, but these things were stripped away from Nilab and Bunafsha when the Taliban returned to power. It’s my privilege to welcome them to NSW Premier cricket with Sydney University so they may continue to pursue their dream to play cricket”.