Have Afghanistan Found A Home In International Cricket?

After years of wilderness, Afghanistan cricket might have finally found a home in Abu Dhabi after signing a five-year deal with Abu Dhabi Cricket and Sports Hub on March 25 (Tuesday). According to the five-year deal, Abu Dhabi will host all of Afghanistan’s ‘A’ games, training camps and even the national age-group games. 

There’s even a discussion that Afghanistan could host their home games in the country, even at the senior men’s level. Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) revealed that "the agreement also encompasses support towards ACB to facilitate the Board's global operations and enhance player development pathways".

Also Read: What's Abu Dhabi Cricket and Sports Hub?

Even ADCSH’s chief executive, Matthew Boucher, revealed that Abu Dhabi is more than happy to be the second home to the fast-growing Afghanistan side. 

"Our facilities have already welcomed the world's best players, and this agreement strengthens our strong commitment to nurturing global sporting and cricket talent and leveraging its capacity to be a force for societal good. We've loved hosting Afghanistan over the last couple of years and are pleased we can confirm Abu Dhabi as their second home."

Given that it is near impossible for teams to travel to Afghanistan, having a stable base in the form of Abu Dhabi, which is also central to the Asian region (where they play most of their games), can be highly useful. 

"The opportunity to now focus on Abu Dhabi as our training base and our home for age-group participation will allow us to elevate Afghanistan's sporting success and build a strong national future for the game of cricket in our country." ACB chief executive Naseeb Khan said.