The phenomenal rise of terrorism-ravaged Afghanistan as a cricketing nation is an event to celebrate. Their improving record in matches involving the International Cricket Council’s associate members and being 10th in ICC team rankings have led to them getting Test status.
It is no mean achievement for a nation where sport was banned by the Taliban for years. It became popular among Afghan refugees in Pakistan during the 1990s and on their return home, they spread its popularity across the country. The Taliban, perhaps as a recognition of its popularity and acceptance in society, lifted the ban on cricket in 2000, thus paving the way for the nation to participate as a team in international competitions.
Today, it is being widely regarded as a team that has the strength and desire to, some day in the near future, become a powerful team in the world. Nothing symbolizes the nation’s talent more than leg-spinner Rashid Khan, who is weaving a web of confusion around the marauding batsmen in the ongoing IPL. As a recognition of that potential, Afghanistan has been given Test status, and is scheduled to become the 12th Test-playing nation in the world, when it takes on India from June 7.
Unfortunately for Afghanistan, when their captain, the 31-year-old Asghar Stanikzai, walks out to toss for the first time in their nation’s Test history, his rival won’t be Virat Kohli. Not that this in any way diminishes Afghanistan’s historic feat, but there is little doubt that
Stanikzai and his team would be disappointed not to have the honour of duelling with one of the world’s most outstanding captain-batsman in their very first Test.
The match itself has been scheduled to be played in India for more than mere cricketing reasons. India, who were the first nation to play post-apartheid against the South Africans, were very keen to be the first to host and welcome the terror-scarred nation into the Test fold, a gesture with political overtures and a friendly message from a much stronger and powerful neighbour.
It is for reasons more political than merely sporting, that some members of the Indian board are unhappy at Kohli missing this historic occasion. They would have liked not only a full-strength Indian team to play their neighbours, but also have their best player and skipper represent them.
India, which has so far never granted players permission to skip playing for their country for any other form of cricket, were even contemplating denying Kohli permission to skip the match. In fact, one board official was even quoted as saying that if Kohli is so keen to get acclimatized for the England tour, why does he not skip some IPL matches as well. Why only the Test match?
While there is little doubt that Kohli’s decision to play for Surrey in the month of June, just before India’s series against England begins, is a laudable one, it has left some board members in disquiet. Had Vinod Rai, the man who runs the BCCI on the Supreme Court’s direction, not stepped in, this issue could have become a sour point between the board and Kohli.
Those steeped in the game’s history and tradition would have liked Kohli to be part of the Indian team, though sentiment has no place in this hard-boiled professional world driven by the complex desire for profits and winning.
Kohli adds more layers to this mix: sporting excellence and extraordinary fitness. He is going to immerse himself in another gruelling schedule in England immediately after the IPL. He is a modern day superman, whose appetite for playing non-stop with no signs of either fatigue or injury, is a marvel in itself.
May be Afghanistan should be happy that he is missing from their most famous day in their short cricketing history so far, as when Kohli plays there is every chance of the event becoming more about him than the teams that play it.