How Afghanistan’s cricket Thirteen years ago, Abdul Rahman Bukhatir took notice of a group of humble cricket players from a war-torn nation and saw potential in them, long before the cricket world realized how an up-and-coming Indian talent named Virat Kohli would transform the game.
2010 witnessed the emergence of some talent for cricket in Afghanistan, thanks to the vision of an Emirati businessman who had revolutionized the sport in the desert in the 1980s.
At the 2009–2010 Intercontinental Cup, an elite cricket competition for associate members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a passionate group of Afghan cricket players warmed Bukhatir’s heart with their skills and perseverance. Many of them had learned the game in refugee camps in Pakistan during the American war against the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan was not allowed to play any of its home matches in Kabul, unlike the other participating teams in the competition, because of security concerns.
Despite this, the traveling squad persisted, touring six different countries over the course of six days, emerging victorious in Kenya, Zimbabwe, the Netherlands, Sri Lanka, and the UK before defeating Scotland in the championship match held at the Dubai International Stadium.
Inspired by the Afghan cricket team’s spirit of perseverance in the face of an overwhelming war, Bukhatir made the decision to lend a helping hand.
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