On Sunday (November 27), the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) announced the signing of a five-year agreement that will allow the ACB to host its bilateral fixtures in the desert kingdom.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will now be the home of Afghanistan cricket for the next five years. On Sunday (November 27), the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) announced the signing of a five-year agreement that will allow the ACB to host its bilateral fixtures in the desert kingdom.
Afghanistan, a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), has been a no-go zone for international teams due to inside aggravations in the country. The latest arrangement will benefit Rashid Khan & Co, who will now have access to world-class venues like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah.
Naseeb Khan, the CEO of the ACB, expressed confidence that the agreement will benefit both teams. For quite a while, UAE was the venue of Pakistan’s bilateral games as the international teams refused to travel to Pakistan for security reasons.
However, Pakistan will also play the upcoming series with Afghanistan in the UAE. As part of the pact, there will also be a yearly bilateral exchange between the Afghanistan and UAE teams.
“The basis of the historic agreement will see the Afghanistan Cricket Board host its home fixtures, and utilize the world-class venues, in the UAE.
“The ACB will also play a series of three T20I matches each year with the UAE national team. In return, the ECB will provide valuable logistic support to the Afghanistan Board, including visa assistance and office space,”
the ECB said in a release.
Mubashshir Usmani, general secretary, of the ECB, said
“Both the Emirates and Afghanistan Cricket Boards enjoy long, cordial relations, and we are happy to support the ACB in ensuring that they have a home for their cricket. We are also thankful to the Afghanistan Cricket Board for agreeing to play T20 internationals against UAE Team each year. This will provide our UAE team with invaluable exposure and help in their development.”
