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World Cricketers Association calls out 'random and inconsistent' support for Afghanistan women

In the same week that an Afghan Women's XI will come together for the first time to play against a Cricket Without Borders team at the Junction Oval in Australia, Moffat spoke to ESPNcricinfo about possible collective action which he says "doesn't necessarily mean boycotts," but should include both the ICC and individual boards.
"The ICC and national governing bodies run and regulate the game and their tournaments, and have a responsibility to exercise leverage to ensure that the rights of players in our sport, including Afghanistan women's players, are protected and respected," Moffat said. "That doesn't necessarily mean boycotts, there are a number of ways to exercise leverage, but to date the random and inconsistent manner of dealing with it, and of even having the conversation around the world, highlights the need for cricket's governing bodies to implement a more systematic global approach to protecting basic player rights, along with just about every other aspect of the sport."
Afghanistan, who have been a Full Member since 2017, does not have a women's team but was developing one before the Taliban takeover in 2021. In 2020, the ACB contracted 25 women's players but they never played an international. Under the Taliban regime, women have been banned from participating in sport and there have been increasing restrictions on them in all aspects of public life including education and access to healthcare.
The crackdown on women's rights has drawn criticism from several international organisations including Amnesty International and the United Nations, and though there are asset freezes on some Taliban officials, there are no sporting bans in place. Afghanistan remain members of FIFA and the ICC, to name two global bodies and sent a team of three men and three women, who were living in exile and were not recognised by the Taliban government, to last year's Paris Olympics.
Currently, Australia are the only country who have cancelled bilateral engagements against Afghanistan while England have said they will do the same. Both countries continue to play Afghanistan in ICC events, even as calls to boycott those games grow.
Cricket South Africa have actively sought out fixtures against Afghanistan and played them in an ODI series in Sharjah last September and maintain that shunning the men's team will not have a material impact on the situation facing women in Afghanistan. South Africa's stance is important because they have first-hand experience of being banned from the 1970s to 1990s and sporting isolation (along with economic sanctions) was a significant contributor to the fall of Apartheid. However, CSA is of the opinion that it will take more than a cricket boycott to force the Taliban to recognise women's rights.
While there is a need to acknowledge that the freedom to play sport is one of many that have been taken away from Afghan women and girls, there is also a desire from organisations like the WCA to underline how crucial that right is.
"Every athlete has the right to equality of opportunity which is protected in the Universal Declaration of Player Rights, underpinned by international law," Moffat said. "That means each player has the right to equality of opportunity in the pursuit of sport, free of discrimination, harassment and violence, and a player's right to pursue sport cannot be limited because of his or her gender."
It is understood that many of the Afghan men's players have family in the country and fear retribution for speaking out, especially as they have little protection. As things stand, Afghanistan does not have a player association but some of the men's players are part of the WCA's global commercial program.
ICC rankings: Adil Rashid No. 1 again, Varun Chakravarthy climbs to fifth among T20I bowlers

Player union wants 'basic protections' to ensure franchise leagues pay players on time

Cricket's global player union has called for the introduction of "basic global protections" to ensure franchise leagues pay players on time. The World Cricketers' Association (WCA) say that long-standing issues around late payments are "not getting better" but fear that cricket is incapable of "solving transnational issues" under its current structure.
Insiders say that the issue has spiralled out of control of late, with a proliferation of new leagues in recent years. The WCA launched a 'leagues hub' last year which details 53 men's and women's leagues, including several which do not have ICC approval. Of those, the WCA say they have received reports of late or non-payment issues in 17.
Tom Moffat, the WCA's chief executive, told ESPNcricinfo: "Late and non-payment is a persistent issue in domestic leagues globally, and the issue is not getting better. We have advocated for a long time for some basic global protections that could assist the players, and the game, to address this issue."
The WCA believes the ICC should introduce a global arbitration body - similar to FIFA's Dispute Resolution Chamber in football - to adjudicate in cases where players are chasing outstanding payments. The ICC's stance is that issues involving domestic leagues are a matter for member boards, and do not fall under their jurisdiction.
"In any league that is officially sanctioned, players should have confidence that their contracts have some basic protections and minimum standards in them," Moffat said. "These include standards around payment terms, and that there is a fit-for-purpose enforcement mechanism, such as a global arbitration body, to address breaches.
"We've assisted a number of players globally to take collective action in the past, but it shouldn't come to that. The game is not currently capable of solving transnational issues like this at the moment and that needs to change if it wants to continue to claim to be a leading global sport in 2025."
One player agent told ESPNcricinfo: "Some of these tournaments have no fear of ramifications They sign big names promising huge contracts, pay a small percentage to get them on the flight, and never pay them another penny. The only solution to this is that the ICC, in return for sanctioning a tournament, has to provide some sort of system to verify that payments will be made."
One commonly proposed solution is for leagues to pay players centrally via an escrow account. This mechanism would involve franchises paying their total wage bill directly to a third-party account before the start of a season, with the league then distributing salaries to players in line with their individual contracts - avoiding a situation where league and franchise blame one another for late payment.
Multiple sources have identified the growing circuit of T10 leagues as a repeat offender. Max60, a league which launched in the Cayman Islands last year, conceded that 10% of player wages remain outstanding from their inaugural tournament in August, while ESPNcricinfo understands that some players are yet to receive payment from November's Abu Dhabi T10.
The Abu Dhabi T10 acknowledged some teams have paid players late, though described these as "isolated incidents". A spokesperson said: "T10 has successfully operated in UAE for eight years now and never had any issues. While there have been isolated incidents of teams delaying payments, the league takes full responsibility for ensuring that all dues are cleared as soon as they come to our attention.
"As of now, we are not aware of any specific player formally reporting an issue," they added. "However, we maintain a strict policy of addressing such matters promptly and taking the necessary action The majority of players have been paid, and the remaining payments are currently being processed."
A Max60 spokesperson said: "We plan to complete payments within the next two weeks. We did experience significant issues, such as one franchise not paying their agreed fees, which led to delays. However, with it being our first season, we are comfortable with our learnings." The start date for the second edition of Max60 was recently postponed from March 13 to May 24.
Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98
Redick candid as Bronny struggles in extended run

PHILADELPHIA -- Lakers coach JJ Redick second-guessed his decision to insert rookie Bronny James into his rotation in Los Angeles' 118-104 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday.
"Maybe put him in a tough spot," Redick said after James went 0-for-5 with three turnovers in 15 minutes. "Flying up yesterday, nationally televised game in Philly and all that stuff. He didn't play well, but he's been playing great in the stay-ready games, and he's been playing great in the G [League]."
James was on assignment with the South Bay Lakers, L.A.'s G League affiliate, when the Lakers recalled him Monday to join them in the middle of their five-game road trip.
The Lakers' No. 55 pick in the second round in June, the eldest son of star LeBron James, had not played meaningful minutes for L.A. since opening night when the James family became the first father-son duo in NBA history to play in a game together.
With backup Gabe Vincent (left knee) sidelined the past two games, Redick gave Bronny a shot in the first quarter against Philadelphia with L.A. up 17-9.
"Just felt like on a back-to-back, just him giving us energy, I think, was the goal," Redick said. "I have confidence in him, but obviously didn't provide that at a high level."
The 6-foot-2 guard struggled immediately, with the Sixers' Tyrese Maxey (43 points) attacking him defensively to score and then turning it over on a bad pass to Anthony Davis on offense, leading to a transition dunk for Guerschon Yabusele.
"He's a fast guard," Bronny said of Maxey. "Amazing touch. Can shoot it. I was trying to stand my ground. Just trying to play as hard as I can and bring as much energy as I can. That's all."
He added that the call-up to the Lakers, a few days after scoring a season-high 31 points in the G League, caught him off guard.
"It just came out of nowhere, so I was always trying to stay ready to play and always keeping my mind right," he said.
Despite the rough night, Bronny still cited growth since opening night when he closed out the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves with his dad.
"I feel like I'm a whole lot more prepared now," he said. "Again, just coming out and staying ready after the G League stint and the season being down the road a little bit more, just staying ready. And coming in, playing smart."
LeBron said his son's growth will continue with more opportunities.
"Obviously, it's his first extensive minutes with us," LeBron said. "We had that first game where it was just a moment -- and that was a great moment. But tonight was his first opportunity to be with the big guys, be with the big club, and he's going to continue to use that and get better and better."
Squash shorts: ESF goes crypto, World Squash rebrands

The European Squash Federation (ESF) has become the first major sports federation in Europe to embrace cryptocurrency by adopting Bitcoin into its operations.
ESF will hold Bitcoin as an asset on its balance sheet, following the example of many leading global institutions. Additionally, ESF will facilitate the use of Bitcoin for both incoming payments and outgoing transactions, wherever it is deemed appropriate.
It will leverage its newly-launched media platform, European Squash TV, to enable fans to directly support players, clubs and national squash federations through donations.
By adopting Bitcoin, we are not only modernizing our financial approach but also offering new opportunities for engagement and support within the squash community, said Otto Kalvø, ESF vice-president. We believe this will open doors for innovation and growth.
Meanwhile, the World Squash Federation has rebranded its logo for the first time since 2011 and cut its governing body name to World Squash.
The logo and branding update has been delivered by Squash Media and Marketing (SMM), a commercial entity owned and operated by the Professional Squash Association (PSA).
World Squash CEO William Louis-Marie said: Its such an exciting time for squash right now, with participation and viewing figures climbing as our sport prepares to make its Olympic debut at LA28, and the new logo and vibrant colours embody the sense of optimism and excitement among the squash community.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Connor Bedard scored from a seemingly impossible angle, Arvid Soderblom stopped 34 shots and the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 on Tuesday night.
Landon Slaggert, Ryan Donato and Teuvo Teravainen also scored for Chicago, which won for just the third time in 18 games this season when trailing after the first period.
"Obviously, it was a big game for them there," Bedard said on his postgame interview on the Chicago Sports Network, referring to the Lightning. "It's a pretty tight race for the playoffs. They were playing hard, and we were playing hard. We have a lot of pride in ourselves. But that makes it fun, though."
The 19-year-old Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, sparked the Blackhawks on a power play midway through the second period. He drifted to near the bottom of the right circle before firing a shot through a tiny window that got past goaltender Jonas Johansson and hit the left post for Bedard's 14th goal of the season.
"I saw enough room for puck to go in," Bedard said of the angle he took on the goal. "It was late in the power play, and just thought I'd give it a go. I've tried that shot a million times and I finally put one in."
Johansson finished with 16 saves. Brayden Point scored early in the first period for Tampa Bay, which has lost four of five.
Slaggert put the Blackhawks ahead late in the second period, and Donato scored midway through the third. Teravainen added an empty-netter and Soderblom made it all hold up.
"He's been unbelievable, every game," Bedard said of his goaltender. "We have so much confidence in him. But I thought our group played well. ... To be able to come in here and get a win? It's huge."
Chicago snapped a seven-game skid on the road (0-6-1). Its last victory away from home had been Dec. 9 at the New York Rangers.
Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy missed the game with an illness, and 27-year-old emergency backup Kyle Konin dressed for his fourth career NHL game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Inglis debuts as Australia, Sri Lanka name spin-heavy teams

Toss Australia chose to bat vs Sri Lanka
Inglis, the Western Australia wicketkeeper and a noted player of spin, will replace Head at No. 5 and play as a specialist batter. He is Australia's first choice wicketkeeper in T20I and ODI cricket, having recently captained the team in both formats, and has scored 363 runs at an average of 72.6 in this season's Sheffield Shield.
With the surface expected to produce sharp turn, Murphy has been named and will form a spin-heavy attack with fellow offspinner Nathan Lyon and left-armer Matthew Kuhnemann. Murphy last played Test cricket during the 2023 Ashes series in the UK.
Kuhnemann will play his first Test match since the tour of India in early 2023 having recovered from a thumb injury suffered in a BBL match on January 16. Left-arm quick Mitchell Starc is the only pace bowler in the attack with allrounder Beau Webster able to bowl seam and spin. Boland misses out despite a 10-wicket haul in the fifth Test against India at the SCG earlier this month.
Smith will lead Australia for the two-match series with regular skipper Pat Cummins on paternity leave. He is perched on 9999 Test runs having agonisingly fallen short of the milestone at the SCG. Only Ricky Ponting, Allan Border and Steve Waugh have achieved the feat for Australia.
The match will begin amid stifling humidity and there is the threat of showers on day one with rain having lashed Galle over the past week.
Sri Lanka have won five of their last six Test matches in Galle, while Australia have an overall record of three wins, two defeats and one draw at the venue.
Sri Lanka: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne, 2 Oshada Fernando, 3 Dinesh Chandimal, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Kamindu Mendis, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), 7 Kusal Mendis (wk), 8 Prabath Jayasuriya, 9 Nishan Peiris, 10 Jeffrey Vandersay, 11 Asitha Fernando
Australia: 1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Travis Head, 3 Marnus Labuschagne, 4 Steven Smith (capt), 5 Josh Inglis, 6 Alex Carey (wk), 7 Beau Webster, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Todd Murphy, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Matthew Kuhnemann
Healy declares herself fit but not locked in, Dunkley to play but Cross unavailable

But despite declaring herself ready to play, she could not confirm whether she was locked into the XI as the selectors are set to make the final decision on Wednesday evening.
"I'm good to go," Healy said with a smile. "The final XI hasn't quite been decided upon just yet, but I'm standing here in front of you without a moon boot, saying I'm ready to go."
Healy confirmed that the decision would be a joint one between the selectors and the medical staff as to her availability.
"I think a bit of both," Healy said. "I think the medical staff have been really supportive of not necessarily what I've wanted to do, but just the opportunity to potentially even push to play in this Test match in particular. They've been awesome. We've done everything we possibly can to get myself in a position to put my hand up and say, I'm ready to go. There's a little bit taken out of my hands in that regard and obviously we still want to do the best by the team. But I'm excited and I feel like, body wise, I'm ready to get out there and lead the side in a Test match which is cool."
Healy said she had pulled up well after running, fielding and batting at training on Tuesday and also confirmed she would not need much pain management throughout the game. She also said there were very few fears of her doing any more damage to the stress injury in her foot.
"It's been surprising to me every single day that I've done some stuff, just how well it's responded," Healy said. "I was pushed pretty hard yesterday. I think you all saw me. I was blowing a fair bit.
"Obviously we've done that on purpose to try and see what I can and can't get through and I've pulled up really well. So I'm really positive moving forward.
"There's a bit of unknown as to how the four days will pan out. But I think at the moment I'm on as little medication as possible, which I think is a huge sign. The fact that I can get through what I can without any, always means you can add more, right? But we've sought a lot of advice, a lot of specialist advice as to what it might look like moving forward, and there's no real evidence to suggest that it might go any further than what it currently is. So that's positive signs for me, and probably gave me the mental nod as well to go, yep, I think I can push to try and play. So I'm confident getting through four days, and hopefully it can do just that."
"Moons coming down the order is a bit of a shift, and we're going to have to make a decision at the top," Healy said. "I'm more than happy to bat anywhere for Australia. I think everybody knows that. So whether it's me, great, if it's not me, then obviously there's a pretty obvious candidate."
"We've got 12 at the moment, we're just deciding on the final bowler," Knight said. "Obviously, in the last Test match we went for an extra bowler because of the proximity to the Ashes. But in this Test match, we're going to play the extra batter, so Sophia Dunkley will come in from that Test match. And then we're just deciding between a seamer or a spinner for that final spot. We'll have another look at the wicket tonight."
There's no room for Cross however. Despite getting through two spells at training yesterday, she is not quite fit enough to play in the Test match.
'Yeah mate, no stress': Konstas takes axing in stride

Dodemaide stopped short of guaranteeing Konstas would reclaim his opening spot for the home Ashes this summer but insisted the star teenager remained part of succession plans for an ageing Australian squad.
Konstas turned heads with his aggressive approach in his first two Tests to help seal a rare series victory over India, but has not toured the subcontinent before.
After being told he would be dropped, Konstas offered to arrive at the ground early for day one on Wednesday to help with preparations.
"There's a lot to like and be impressed about Sam," Dodemaide said.
"One of the things is his ability to take things in his stride. It's remarkable really, whether it's playing in front of 90,000 and Jasprit Bumrah at the MCG or getting told that you're left out of the Test.
"He was like, 'Oh yeah mate, no stress. I get it'."
Konstas memorably slapped the world's best paceman Bumrah around the ground in Melbourne as he scored a half-century in his first Test dig on Boxing Day. He then partnered with Usman Khawaja to ignite the series-winning run chase at the SCG.
But Dodemaide would not guarantee Konstas would be able to reprise his heroics during the next home series, with two Sri Lanka Tests, the World Test Championship final and a West Indies tour to play out before then.
"We won't pre-empt what's happening there," Dodemaide said.
"But clearly he's done a lot right hasn't he?
"We're looking for those successor players to come in, there will be some turnover naturally in the next couple of years or so and he's very much staked a claim."
Selectors will also not rule out Konstas returning to the XI in the second and final Sri Lanka Test, pending the result in the first.
"He's a hugely talented player, hasn't played a lot in this part of the world but he'll learn quickly obviously," Dodemaide said.
"The opportunity to have him here, not to say that Test two is out of the question obviously depending on what happens here, but the opportunity to give Nathan McSweeney, Cooper Connolly and even now Ollie Peake [on the tour as a development player] is an investment in the future."
"There is a real missed opportunity for the Australians here to get to learn a bit more about Sam Konstas," the former Test captain said on Channel Seven.
"If he is the player we all think he is, I would have loved to have seen him work out a way to play spin in tough conditions in Sri Lanka over the next couple of weeks."
Dodemaide said Australia needed to prioritise a first series win in Sri Lanka since 2011 even if the side had already qualified for the WTC final.
"A lot of the narrative has been around this tour doesn't matter. It really does, it's Test cricket. That's our priority," he said.
Source: McCarthy shifts focus to '26 hiring cycle

Mike McCarthy, the former Dallas Cowboys coach who was in the running for the Saints job, is no longer planning to coach this year, and Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore has emerged as a lead candidate to fill the New Orleans vacancy, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Tuesday night.
No final decision has been made by New Orleans, which has held second interviews with three known candidates -- Moore, Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver and New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka. Moore's second interview was Monday, a day after his Eagles offense erupted for 55 points in an NFC Championship Game rout of the Commanders.
McCarthy had been scheduled to have his first interview with the Saints this week, but instead will focus on the 2026 hiring cycle, a source told ESPN, confirming an NFL Network report.
McCarthy had a 49-35 record in his five seasons as coach of Dallas. His contract expired after the season, and the sides mutually agreed to head in different directions.
He had interviewed for the Chicago Bears head coaching job before they hired Ben Johnson last week.
The Saints are the last NFL team with a current head coach opening. They fired Dennis Allen during the season, with special teams coach Darren Rizzi filling in on an interim basis (Rizzi also interviewed for the head coach job earlier this month.)
Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury opted not to pursue the Saints job, a team source confirmed to ESPN earlier Tuesday. And Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady opted to stay in Buffalo instead of pursuing a second interview with New Orleans. A third candidate, Aaron Glenn, interviewed virtually with the Saints but was ultimately hired by the New York Jets.
Dallas hired McCarthy as Jason Garrett's replacement in 2020 with a clear mandate: Deliver postseason success. But he won just one playoff game, and suffered devastating home losses in the wild-card round to the San Francisco 49ers (2021) and Green Bay Packers (2023).
McCarthy has followed a similar coaching plan of sitting out a year before.
After he was let go by the Packers late in the 2018 season, he interviewed for the vacancies with the Cleveland Browns and Giants but opted to sit out the 2019 season.