|| AFP ||

Afghan student Basit Wali Hotak travelled hundreds of kilometres overnight to Kabul on Thursday for the chance to glimpse his cricket hero, Rashid Khan, on a home pitch.

The Shpageeza T20 league kicked off last week, with the usual cricket fever fanned by the promised inclusion of national players, many of whom have not joined domestic tournaments since the Taliban authorities swept to power in 2021.

Thousands of fans turned out at the Kabul International Cricket Stadium to see the famous players.

"I am extremely happy," Hotak told AFP, as he waited in a crowd jostling for tickets and fried snacks before filing past Taliban security guards to enter the stadium.

"I hardly noticed how long the line was out of joy that I would finally get to see Rashid Khan," Hotak said of the ace spinner and captain of the T20 national team.

Hotak left the southern city of Kandahar on Wednesday night to reach Kabul by 6 am (0130 GMT), sleeping only an hour before rushing to the stadium.

Women were not allowed to watch the match at Kabul Cricket Stadium

In cricket-mad Afghanistan, the national team's strides on the international stage have provided rare moments of widespread celebration in a country ravaged by four decades of war.

Hotak was one of many who made long journeys over accident-prone and poorly maintained roads and spent their limited cash to buy the 50 Afghani (70-cent) tickets.

"For Rashid Khan, even if the ticket was 1,000 Afghanis ($14), I would still have bought one," said the 21-year-old, who has a picture of the Afghan sensation as his phone background.

"This has been my biggest dream."

- 'Heroes' -

A Taliban security officer (L) is at work as Afghan cricket fans stand in line outside Kabul Cricket Stadium on August 22, 2024

Much to Hotak's dismay, Khan and other star players expected to join the match between the Speenghar Tigers and Mis-e-Ainak Knights were not part of the playing eleven.
Still, when the cameras showed the Afghan captain sitting in the dugout, loud cheers erupted in the all-male crowd.

After the match, Khan signed autographs at the edge of the stands, with fans injuring themselves on barbed wire along the barriers as they scrambled to reach the star.

"If you see my room and my social media accounts, they are flooded with photos of king Rashid Khan," said 18-year-old Abid Usmani from Kapisa, who had printed a banner covered with Khan photos.

"He is an asset for us, a star not only for the Afghans but on the international level."

Afghan Cricket players from the Speen Ghar Tigers team (Orange) play against the Mis-e-Ainak Knights (Black) during Afghanistan's leading T20 cricket league 'Shpageeza' at the Kabul Cricket Stadium in Kabul, on August 22, 2024

During the match, a chant of "heroes, long live heroes" periodically boomed from loudspeakers, occasionally drawing jubilant responses from the crowd.
Former captain and allrounder Mohammad Nabi did take to the pitch, facing off against his son, Hassan Eisakhil -- both wearing "Number 7" jerseys.

The presence of Afghan national players in the Shpageeza league after several years also raised fans' hopes that international teams might play in Afghanistan.

The Taliban government has not been recognised by any other state, complicating sports' teams participation in international arenas, but athletes from other countries have recently been welcomed to Afghanistan for competition.

"If they (national players) play games here, the international teams will also come to play here, because it shows security has been ensured," suggested 19-year-old Abdul Ahad.

Another fan, Kamil Shah Mashal, travelled hours with his friends to the capital.

"It is crazy love that has brought us here to Kabul from Khost," which borders Pakistan, he told AFP.

"I don't see any other reason for young people to be happy in the current situation because of the crises that have made some of them flee the country," he said.

"It's only cricket left that keeps us happy."