Zimbabwe cricketers unsure of participation in Afghanistan T20 League

Zimbabwe Cricket remains uncertain as to whether their players will participate in Afghanistan’s Shpageeza Cricket League due to security concerns.

Following a massive truck bomb explosion on May 31 in Kabul, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and the International Cricket Council (ICC) are still unsure about the participation of Zimbabwe players in Afghanistan’s Shpageeza Cricket League, expected to get underway from July.

Zimbabwe players’ participation in Afghanistan’s inaugural T20 tournament is now uncertain due to security reasons. (AFP/Getty Images)

According to Fox Sports, the sports and recreation commission in Zimbabwe is still to take a final call on whether to send their players for the T20 league considering the security situation reported in Kabul.

“Normally, we approve trips on the blessing of the national association and also the international federation the national association is affiliated to,” Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) director-general, Joseph Muchechetere was quoted as saying by Fox Sports on Friday.

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“In this case, ordinarily we will require Zimbabwe Cricket and the ICC to provide their firm word. But where we feel there is a serious concern for the safety of our sportsmen, we take the matter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which then makes the final decision on the basis of security reasons.”

Zimbabwe cricketers Hamilton Masakadza, Solomon Mire, Sean Williams, and Sikandar Raza all went under the hammer for Afghanistan’s domestic T20 league.

Cricketers from Pakistan, Bangladesh and the West Indies are amongst the others set to participate in the tournament.