KABUL – The Taliban have approved Afghanistan’s first cricket Test since their takeover, raising hopes that international matches will continue as usual under the new rule of the Islamists.
“We have got approval to send the team to Australia,” the chief executive of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, Hamid Shinwari, told AFP.
During their first stint in power, before they were ousted in 2001, the Taliban banned most forms of entertainment — including many sports — and stadiums were used as public execution venues.
The hardline Islamists do not mind cricket, however, and the game is popular among many fighters.
They have also promised to enforce a less strict version of Islamic law this time, after seizing…
