Yvette Cooper plays friendly cricket match with exiled Afghan women’s team

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper plays a game of cricket with members of the Afghan Refugee Women’s Cricket Team at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in central London. The team was set up during the Afghan Republic in 2010, but lost their recognition as a national team following the Taliban’s return to power. Most members of the women’s cricket team fled the country, and the majority are now based in Australia, where they have rebuilt their lives as refugees, and campaign for recognition. (Jordan Pettitt/PA) - (PA Wire)

Yvette Cooper has said it is an “outrage” that Afghan women are not allowed to play sport and take part in many facets of day-to-day life as she welcomed the country’s exiled cricket team to the Foreign Office in London.

The Foreign Secretary joined the Afghan women’s refugee cricket team for a friendly game in the quad of her department’s central London headquarters.

Both Ms Cooper and Foreign Office minister Hamish Falconer took turns batting against the Afghan team in the paved surroundings of the grand building’s outdoor area.

There, the Foreign Secretary was also presented with a bat decorated by members of the team, and in turn signed a pink cricket ball to give to them.

The exiled team are largely based in Australia after fleeing from their home country because of the Taliban’s clampdown on women’s rights.

They are currently in London on a tour of England, which comes as the ICC women’s T20 World Cup semi-final between England and South Africa takes place at the Oval on Thursday night.

Yvette Cooper plays a game of cricket with members of the Afghan refugee women’s cricket team (Jordan Pettitt/PA) (PA Wire)

Speaking to the women of the team after their friendly game, Ms Cooper said: “Frankly, it is an outrage that you are not able to play cricket in Afghanistan.

“It is barbarous the way in which the Taliban are treating women, denying girls the chance to go to school, denying them the chance to be in sport, in healthcare, from working … so many different human rights are being denied.

“Your resilience and spirit in standing up for the chance to enjoy sport, the chance to be able to be talented women who are doing amazing things is an inspiration and a hope.

“But whilst the Taliban government is being so barbarous and trying to choke off basic rights, I think we across the world have an obligation to stand with you, to show our solidarity with you, and that means the ICC needs to show solidarity with you as well.”