English players face calls to reconsider Afghanistan Premier League participation

English cricketers who have registered for the Afghanistan Premier League draft have been urged to reconsider their involvement because of the Taliban's treatment of women and girls. BBC Sport reported that Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi and Amnesty International raised concerns about participation in the men's franchise competition, which is organised by the Afghanistan Cricket Board.

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Ollie Pope and Luke Wood are among the England players registered for the October draft. Other English entrants named in the report include Moeen Ali, Reece Topley, James Vince, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Laurie Evans. The five-team tournament is scheduled to begin on 27 December in the United Arab Emirates. Irish and Scottish players have also registered, including Jai Moondra and Brandon McMullen.

The England and Wales Cricket Board does not arrange bilateral men's matches against Afghanistan because of restrictions imposed on women and girls. However, BBC Sport understands that this policy does not cover franchise competitions, leaving individual players to decide whether to take part. The board is likely to issue the necessary No Objection Certificates if the International Cricket Council sanctions the event. The Afghan board's application for approval is still being considered.

Antoniazzi, who previously led calls for England to boycott their 2025 Champions Trophy fixture against Afghanistan, asked players to consider the consequences of participating while Afghan women are denied rights and the women's cricket team remains in exile. She also urged the ICC not to sanction the tournament. The earlier boycott campaign included a cross-party letter to the ECB signed by 200 MPs.

Amnesty International's Felix Jakens also called on players and the ECB to consider the message their involvement would send to Afghan girls. He said women had been banned from playing sport since 2021 and girls remained excluded from education beyond the age of 11. Jakens urged cricketers to use their influence to press for those restrictions to be reversed.

Afghanistan's women cricketers have continued as a refugee team since the Taliban returned to power, with support from the ICC and the boards of England, India and Australia. According to BBC Sport, the ICC extended funding for the women through 2032 in July and strengthened its commitment to future participation in qualification events. Approval for the men's franchise tournament, meanwhile, remains unresolved.