How Rashid Khan lent his helping hand for Afghanistan women's team

Firooza Amiri has revealed how Rashid Khan supported the Afghanistan women's team. Recently, Rashid also spoke in their favour during a press conference at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

Afghanistan women's cricketer Firooza Amiri has spoken about how Rashid Khan extended his support to the team during a time of crisis. Amiri is among the Afghan players now living in exile in Australia after fleeing the Taliban regime - a situation that continues to cast uncertainty over Afghanistan's standing in international cricket.

Rashid was recently asked about the women's team during his tenure as Afghanistan captain at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup. He acknowledged that women's cricket is an essential requirement for full ICC membership and said he takes pride in seeing Afghans represent the nation on any global stage.

Responding to his remarks, Amiri revealed that Rashid had earlier shown tangible support for women's cricket by helping set up a cricket academy in Kabul, offering encouragement and opportunity to aspiring female cricketers.

"My name is Firooza Amiri, and I was one of the 23 players centrally contracted by the Afghanistan Cricket Board in 2021. That year, the board officially contracted 23 players as members of the Afghanistan national women's cricket team. We trained in Afghanistan, represented our country, and lived there proudly. Rashid, you were among those who supported cricket development by providing a cricket academy in Kabul. You know this team exists," Amiri said in a video on her Instagram handle.

A post shared by Firooza__Amiri (@firooza_amiri08)

Amiri described the hardships Afghanistan's women cricketers have endured since the Taliban regained control of the country in 2021. She spoke about the challenges the players have faced, including displacement and personal loss, and stressed that it is incorrect to claim that Afghanistan does not have a women's team.