Women | Cricket Scotland says it will play Afghanistan's men only at ICC events, citing the Taliban's treatment of women and girls and the loss of women's cricket

ACW | November 10, 2026 — Cricket Scotland will not schedule bilateral or tri-series matches against Afghanistan's men's team because of the Taliban's treatment of women and girls, the governing body said in a statement on Monday.

The statement, published in full by The Edinburgh Reporter, said the growth of women and girls in cricket is one of the board's four strategic priorities. Scotland will also not host training camps or warm-up games with Afghanistan outside International Cricket Council (ICC) events.

Scotland will still face Afghanistan at ICC tournaments, where fixtures are set by competition rules. Those games "should not be interpreted as an endorsement of the current Afghan regime," the statement said.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board asked to train in Scotland in July before a series in Ireland and was turned down, IANS reported. The board later approached Scotland about the planned Afghanistan Premier League.

Cricket Scotland said it would clear opener George Munsey, the only Scottish player picked in the league's draft, if the ICC sanctions the competition. The policy will be reviewed every year or after a major ICC decision. Neither the Afghanistan Cricket Board nor the Taliban had responded in published reports.

Background: Cricket Australia and the England and Wales Cricket Board have also restricted bilateral cricket with Afghanistan, Amu TV reported, citing ESPNcricinfo. ACW earlier reported that Afghan women cricketers say rights outweigh any league.

Why it matters: Women's cricket has effectively disappeared inside Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, Amu TV reported. Cricket Scotland tied any return to bilateral games to a "material change" for women's cricket and human rights in Afghanistan.

ACW will continue to follow this story.

Sources: Cricket Scotland (statement via The Edinburgh Reporter) — Cricket Scotland make stance on Afghanistan; IANS — Insight into Cricket Scotland's new engagement with Afghanistan; Amu TV — Scotland boycotts bilateral cricket matches against Afghanistan

Photo: Afghanistan Cricket Board (via Amu TV)