LEEDS: It is a complicated relationship. Many Afghanistan players learned the game growing up as refugees in Pakistan but lots of Afghans also accuse their powerful neighbor of supporting Taliban militants.Afghanistan v Pakistan is perhaps the World Cup match that cricket fans in the war-weary nation will be watching most intensely.
With years of distrust and blame between the two countries, a high-stakes victory over Pakistan in the sport it loves best on Saturday would taste especially sweet to Afghans.
There is also intrigue on the pitch at Headingley, in the northern English city of Leeds.
Pakistan cannot afford any more slip-ups, needing to win their final two matches to retain a realistic chance of reaching the semifinals after a slow start to the tournament.
Afghanistan, appearing in just their second World Cup since their debut in 2015, are playing for pride after losing all seven of their matches so far.
Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib played down the political tensions between the two nations at his pre-match press conference on Friday, saying he hoped cricket could build bridges.
“If you look at our cricket, we learnt a lot of cricket in Pakistan and we also played cricket in Pakistan,” Naib said.
“We are also hoping cricket is one thing that can keep a good relationship for anyone, any other country. So I am hoping that not only with Pakistan, but with India, Sri Lanka and other countries.”
- Refugee camps -
Cricket became popular in Afghanistan after the Soviet invasion of 1979, with young people learning the sport in refugee camps on the Pakistan border.
All-rounder Mohammad Nabi and leg-spinner Rashid Khan started playing the game in Peshawar while the Pakistan Cricket Board helped Afghanistan cricket by providing equipment and playing opportunities.
Two former Pakistan internationals — Kabir Khan and Rashid Latif — have played key roles in the development of Afghanistan as coaches over the past decade.
But the lingering tensions mean that Afghan players are reluctant to draw attention to their association with Pakistan and often show more of an affiliation with Pakistan’s arch rivals, India.
On the pitch, Afghanistan beat their formidable rivals in a pre-World Cup warm-up match, but they have lost all three official one-day internationals between the two sides.
Despite this winning record, Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed warned his players not to take Afghanistan lightly.
“We know they have quality spinners in their team,” said Sarfaraz, referring to Rashid, Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. “We can’t take them lightly because a team such as Afghanistan can be dangerous.”
“We have staged a comeback with a strong belief that we can win and then our way to the semifinal is paved, but at the moment we have only Saturday’s game on our minds,” he added.
Pakistan’s last match of the round-robin phase is against Bangladesh, which could turn into another virtual quarter-final at Lord’s on July 5 as they target the semifinals and dream of a second World Cup triumph.
Afghanistan’s sights are set lower but they have a long-term dream.
Naib said he hoped playing at tournaments such as the World Cup would boost the standard of the game in Afghanistan.
“We want more matches to build our cricket so it’s really good for us to play a lot of cricket with them (major nations),” said the Afghan skipper.
Politics spices up Pakistan-Afghanistan World Cup tie
Politics spices up Pakistan-Afghanistan World Cup tie
- A win against arch-foe Pakistan will be especially sweet for Afghans
- Many Afghanistan players learned the game growing up as refugees in Pakistan
Pakistan, global crypto exchange discuss modernizing digital payments, creating job prospects
- Pakistani officials, Binance team discuss coordination between Islamabad, local banks and global exchanges
- Pakistan has attempted to tap into growing crypto market to curb illicit transactions, improve oversight
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s finance officials and the team of a global cryptocurrency exchange on Friday held discussions aimed at modernizing the country’s digital payments system and building local talent pipelines to meet rising demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, the finance ministry said.
The development took place during a high-level meeting between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal bin Saqib, domestic bank presidents and a Binance team led by Global CEO Richard Teng. The meeting was held to advance work on Pakistan’s National Digital Asset Framework, a regulatory setup to govern Pakistan’s digital assets.
Pakistan has been moving to regulate its fast-growing crypto and digital assets market by bringing virtual asset service providers (VASPs) under a formal licensing regime. Officials say the push is aimed at curbing illicit transactions, improving oversight, and encouraging innovation in blockchain-based financial services.
“Participants reviewed opportunities to modernize Pakistan’s digital payments landscape, noting that blockchain-based systems could significantly reduce costs from the country’s $38 billion annual remittance flows,” the finance ministry said in a statement.
“Discussions also emphasized building local talent pipelines to meet rising global demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, creating high-value employment prospects for Pakistani youth.”
Blockchain is a type of digital database that is shared, transparent and tamper-resistant. Instead of being stored on one computer, the data is kept on a distributed network of computers, making it very hard to alter or hack.
Web3 refers to the next generation of the Internet built using blockchain, focusing on giving users more control over their data, identity and digital assets rather than big tech companies controlling it.
Participants of the meeting also discussed sovereign debt tokenization, which is the process of converting a country’s debt such as government bonds, into digital tokens on a blockchain, the ministry said.
Aurangzeb called for close coordination between the government, domestic banks and global exchanges to modernize Pakistan’s payment landscape.
Participants of the meeting also discussed considering a “time-bound amnesty” to encourage users to move assets onto regulated platforms, stressing the need for stronger verifications and a risk-mitigation system.
Pakistan has attempted in recent months to tap into the country’s growing crypto market, crack down on money laundering and terror financing, and promote responsible innovation — a move analysts say could bring an estimated $25 billion in virtual assets into the tax net.
In September, Islamabad invited international crypto exchanges and other VASPs to apply for licenses to operate in the country, a step aimed at formalizing and regulating its fast-growing digital market.
