ICC must 'deliver own rules' on England game

DOWNING Street has called on the International Cricket Council to "deliver on their own rules" as the England team resists pressure to boycott their forthcoming match against Afghanistan.

- RORY DOLLARD and CAITLIN DOHERTY

A cross-party group of over 160 MPs and peers have signed a letter urging the England and Wales Cricket Board to sit out next month's fixture at the Champions Trophy in Lahore as a moral objection to the Taliban regime's ongoing assault on women's rights in the country.

ECB chief executive Richard Gould responded by saying he would "actively advocate" collective action rather than take a unilateral stand by forfeiting the game.

That stance has now received political backing from Number 10, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer's official spokesman suggesting the onus remained with the sport's governing body.