‘Coaches discussed abusing kids with pride’: The dark side of Pakistan sport

Sexual harassment and abuse is a scourge that continues to blight Pakistani sport, write Arslan Sheikh and Rabia Bugti, particularly among vulnerable young girls chasing their dream of becoming professional athletes

Children from the poorest families are most vulnerable to exploitation (Getty)

In 1997, B*, a young, enthusiastic girl with dreams of representing Pakistan at cricket, left her home after bidding goodbye to her family.

She had been selected in trials run by the newly established women’s wing of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as a bowler for the national camp from where the squad was to be selected for their first tour to Australia. She was asked to pack her bags as she had to report to the regional academy in Karachi first, the provincial capital of Sindh where she lived, from where the team would head to Lahore. It seemed like the perfect script for a teenager, but the end came far sooner than she’d anticipated.

She reached the academy only to find out that she has been replaced by the daughter of an influential police officer from Hyderabad. She walked up to the manager and enquired about her room, at which the manager told her to check her name in the list posted on the wall. Her name was not on the list.