Cricket-mad Afghan refugees get chance to play favourite sport

By Hannah Neary, Local Democracy Reporter

Cricket-mad Afghan refugees in London have been given the chance to set aside the pain of the Taliban for just a few hours to play their favourite sport.

Young refugees living in west London say they have found an outlet to escape the trauma of fleeing their home country by playing the sport so popular back home.

Kensington and Chelsea council has organised a range of sports sessions for evacuees to boost their mental health and well-being.

Afghan evacuees are currently being housed in three borough hotels while they wait for the Home Office to give them permanent homes.

A group of Afghan cricketers practiced in indoor nets for the first time since moving to the UK.

One of them, Basir, said: “We really enjoy being able to play cricket with friends.

“It is one of our favourite sports. When I was back in Afghanistan I used to play and I really enjoyed it. Cricket is very famous in Afghanistan.

“Since arriving in the UK we hadn’t had any chance to play, but now we come here and can play again.

“It was really hard to leave our home country, especially in a hurry as we were evacuated. We are having fun and we just want to forget the pain that we have suffered from the situation back in Afghanistan.”

Pictured top: An Afghan refugee takes part in the cricket sessions (Picture: Kensington & Chelsea council)