Batting for Afghanistan
They say that impartiality is one of the keys to being a good reporter. You should have the ability to step back from the subject however close to your heart and be able to ask questions, observe their faults and if necessary be critical.
But I've got to say the hardest I've ever been tested in my features with Inside Sport in terms of impartiality has been with the Afghan cricket team.
They are hand on heart the most open and accommodating group of sportsmen that you'll ever meet.
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Yes, they had a kind of conceit to them, saying "I think we can beat anyone in the world" or "we are the most famous sportsmen in Afghanistan" or "I think we are the first people to visit here from Afghanistan" - the last one used liberally apparently from Jersey to Tanzania, Argentina to South Africa - even though at every turn some expat would turn out to cheer them on or to offer them a meal.
But it doesn't take long to realise that it's not arrogance, it's closer to naivete - and that is a really endearing quality that can not be applied to many sportspeople at all.
Almost all of the Afghans grew up in Peshawar, the border region of Pakistan, which for decades was home to hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Soviet invasion and then the Taliban.
In the few open spaces in the camps, children would roll out flat dirt wickets, tape up tennis balls and play cricket.
Years later, the boyhood afficionados became cricket pioneers for Afghanistan, burning their way up the ICC world rankings to the verge of qualifying for the world cup.
It's like Cool Runnings or Eddie the Eagle but with one really crucial difference. The Afghanistan team are actually good - not Pakistan or India good but they've now beaten Scotland and Ireland in one-day contests and have every right to call themselves "the most famous sportsmen" in Afghanistan.
There are big plans for cricket academies, first class fixtures and proper funding for the sport nationally.
In the run up to the filming, I asked one cricket and Afghanistan expert if there was anything approaching a regional competition within Afghanistan and he memorably replied "well there is... sort of. But no-one wants to play Helmand away".
Fingers crossed that that situation will one day be very different.
In a previous life I won four gold medals at the Olympics between 1992 and 2004 and I now work at the BBC. Whilst I was part of the Beijing team for the BBC in the summer of 2008, my primary role is as reporter for 
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Good writing. I just wanna make a humble question. You are right in saying that most of the Afghans grew up in Peshawar initially due to Soviet invasion and then due to Taliban. Why they are taking refugee in Peshawar these days? Do you know the enemy now? Or they just happy on living in Peshawar? Can you name this enemy now? I hope you will provide full information in future while writing on such a high level---as BBC.
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No team will want to tour Afghanistan. If they do then Pakistan will be in uproar. Perhaps the United Arab Emirates can be used as their 'home' which would help boost their chances of playing top teams like India, Australia and South Africa.
Whatever happens I wish them the best of luck in their journey.
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An interesting piece Matthew and I hope the Afghan team continues its progress and who knows, maybe cricket can become a unifying element in the country. On another note, regarding the comment from Shams35, it is interesting how the most innocuous looking feel-good human interest story can fire people's prejudices and bigotry.
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Shams35 - apologies- the necessary brevity for blogs does not equate to clarity. The team members grew up in the refugee camps but returned to Afghanistan in 2002 onwards to play cricket for their country. Indeed Kacha Gari camp home to Raees Ahmadzai, one of the main subjects of the film, was closed by the UNHCR in 2007. The team now live in Kabul and Jalalabad and have always called Afghanistan home despite only entering their country for the first time as teenagers or even adults - their ages are always unclear as they weren't given birth certificates in the refugee camps.
One final point they may well lose at least one team member now to his military service. He is due to train with the Americans in the coming months and be on active service in 2010 on - it was set to be a clash with the World Cup in 2011 but that now, sadly, is no longer an issue.
I hope that this provides 'full information'.
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Good article but you failed to mention that despite missing out on the top 4 they did make it into the top 6 with Scotland. This means they gain the status of a one-day international side and can play the full international teams such as England. It also means they get a lot of funding from the ICC which should help them no end. So the campaign was definitely not a failure and is just the beginning.
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It is good to see another new team come in to the so called "big league" but i think that the people who will be able to go and win a number of games such as the following in both Semi-pro vs Semi-pro & Semi-pro vs pro until the 2013 world cup
1. Kenya 30
2. Ireland 26
3. Canada 23
4. Netherlands 20
5. Scotland 19
6. Afganistan 16
But of course it will be tough for Afganistan to beat England as we will be able to score in the following games:
50/50: 250-350
20/20: 200-300
and Afganistan will get
50/50: 150-250
20/20: 100-200
and this will be a big win for England the average win being about from 10 wickets to 200 runs.
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