Afghanistan admitted as associate member of ICC

Afghanistan, banned from the Olympic games was admitted into the International Cricket Council as an associate member on the Monday, June 18.

The ICC's executive board meeting accepted the nomination by the neighbouring country of Pakistan for the war-torn nation's admission into the cricket's governing body.

"Virtually any country that plays cricket that has a cricketing organization will qualify for affiliate membership," said ICC president Malcolm Gray. "We're not making judgments on other matters."

No representatives from Afghanistan attented the meeting. Afghanistan had played its first cricket match, an one day game, against Pakistan on May 10 which it lost by six wickets.

The IOC suspended Afghanistan's national Olympic Committee in October 1999 on the grounds that it could no longer function under the hard-line Taliban regime in Kabul.

The Taliban-run committee does not meet IOC requirements for recognition. Among other things, the Taliban bans women from competing in sports.

Many sports have been discouraged by officials who say it distracts the young from prayer. But the Taliban has made an exception for cricket.