The Taliban Cricket Club - Tapa dura

This is the story of Rukhsana, a savvy Afghan journalist, and someone accustomed to independence. But with the arrival of Taliban her freedoms have become severely curtailed. Unsurprisingly, she s desperate to flee Kabul, but is held back by an ailing mother and younger brother. Then, one day she s called to the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice to meet its head, the notorious Zorak Wahidi. He tells her that the winning team of the cricket match he s organizing will be sent to Pakistan for training to prepare for an international cricket match. On the face of it, though, the idea appears ridiculous: hardly anyone in Afghanistan understands cricket, and Taliban will never embrace a game rooted in civility, fairness and equality. Only Rukhsana knows how to play cricket through her time in Delhi. The tournament offers hope for an escape for herself and her cousins. So Rukhsana starts to work on a daring plan that might just give them all the escape route they so desperately crave.