The upcoming white-ball series between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka that was set to take place in the UAE has been indefinitely postponed, with the conflict and the tensions in the Middle East and Western Asia being cited as the reason for the last-second decision.
The tour was supposed to begin on March 13 in Sharjah, with three T20I matches there, before three ODI games were scheduled in Dubai. However, escalation of tensions has made travel to and from the UAE extremely difficult, if not outright impossible.
Neither Sri Lanka Cricket or the Afghanistan Cricket Board have released statements, but as per an ESPNcricinfo report, both parties have reached an agreement and an understanding that the series cannot go ahead.
Both teams participated in the recent T20 World Cup, Sri Lanka as co-hosts as they reached the Super 8 stage. Afghanistan, who were semifinalists in the 2024 edition, couldn’t make it past the group stage, but played a memorable double-super-over contest against South Africa.
Postponement follows return difficulties from subcontinent
Several teams present in India have found it difficult to fly home due to the tensions in the Middle East, with the West Indies in particular publicly making appeals for help to return home after being stranded on the subcontinent. However, some progress has been made on that front, with the Windies and the Proteas both being informed they could be ready to travel on Tuesday, 10 March.
The cancellation of the Afghanistan-Sri Lanka series means that a captaincy debut for Ibrahim Zadran and a potential first assignment for new Sri Lankan coach Gary Kirsten will have to wait.
This is not the only international assignment that has been forced to postpone, as UAE and Oman weren’t able to travel to Nepal for a set of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 qualification tournament matches. The Gulf teams face big question marks over the immediate future of their cricket, with violence in the area taking precedence over hopes of normalcy in cricketing action.
