With AWCC’s new Cricket Live portal, an SMS service that delivers the latest world cricket news directly to users’ mobile phones, it is easier than ever for Afghan Wireless subscribers to stay up to date on how their favorite teams are doing. And that’s good news, because over the last few years, cricket fever has been sweeping Afghanistan at an impressive rate. Today, huge numbers of Afghans describe themselves as serious cricket fans.
If you’re not used to thinking of Afghanistan as a cricket-mad country, here are eight fun facts about Afghan cricket that will get you up to speed.
1. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) is celebrating its 21st birthday this year.
Due to political and economic instability in the region, cricket as a national sport is a relatively recent development for Afghanistan. The ACB wasn’t formed until 1995, at a time when many Afghans had settled in refugee camps elsewhere. It was the end of the war in 2001 that saw cricket truly take off in Afghanistan; that same year, the International Cricket Council (ICC) recognized the ACB as an affiliate member.
2. The national team’s first official tour was to Pakistan in 2003.
The year 2003 was a memorable one for Afghans because it marked the year of the national cricket team’s first official tour. The team traveled to Pakistan to play against other sides in the Cornelius Trophy tournament. Given the difficulties involved at that time in obtaining visas for international travel, this tour was a significant achievement.
3. The team beat the famed Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in 2006.
Still developing as a cricket nation, Afghanistan encountered the Marylebone Cricket Club for the first time in Mumbai, India, in 2006. Given the respective status of the two sides—Afghanistan having only a handful of tours under their belt, while the MCC’s ranks were boosted by the power of former England captain Mike Gatting—few would have predicted the outcome. It was an unexpectedly triumphant win for Afghanistan, with Mohammad Nabi, who would later captain Afghanistan in the World Cup, hitting a century.
4. Hamid Hassan was the first Afghan to play at Lord’s Cricket Ground.
Known throughout the world as the home of cricket, Lord’s Cricket Ground is a hallowed stadium for the sport located in London and owned by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Founded in 1787, the venue is also the site of the world’s oldest sporting museum, and until 2005, it served as the headquarters of the International Cricket Council. Bowler Hamid Hassan became the first Afghan to play on the famous pitch in 2007, having been called up to the MCC ground staff the previous year as a result of his impressive performance during the MCC-Afghanistan match in Mumbai in 2006.
5. The 2007 Asian Cricket Council T20 trophy was a game-changer for the country.
While Afghanistan had steadily been improving their game throughout the early 2000s, it was their victory against Oman in the final match of the Asian Cricket Council T20 Trophy tournament in 2007 that brought the team to national prominence and widespread fame. The fact of achieving a major victory in a major international tournament had an important impact not just on the team itself, but also on how the team was perceived by its supporters.
6. Afghanistan’s climb of the cricket ranks was very quick.
After their Asian Cricket Council T20 victory, Afghanistan rose quickly to a prominent position in international cricket. In May 2008, the team started in Division Five of the World Cricket League (one of the lower divisions), but by the following year they were playing in the World Cup qualifiers. A series of victories followed: the ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2009-10; the ACC Trophy in 2010; the ACC T20 Cup in 2011 and 2013; and the ACC Premier League in 2014. The team also triumphed in the Asian vs Caribbean T20 Championship in 2012.
7. Skipper Mohammad Nabi’s First Class debut was for MCC.
The captain of Afghanistan’s national team from 2012 to 2015, Mohammad Nabi actually made his First Class debut with the Marylebone Cricket Club. In 2007, long before Afghanistan had gained the status to play First Class matches, Nabi debuted for the MCC against Sri Lanka A. It was an important achievement for a player from a then-fledgling cricket nation.
8. Afghanistan’s UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador is a former cricketer.
Raees Ahmadzai, a cricketer who played for Afghanistan’s national team until his retirement in 2010, is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Afghanistan. He is the first and only person to have held this role for Afghanistan. This fact is a clear reflection of the popularity and importance of cricket for the country.