KABUL -- On a balmy autumn day in west Kabul earlier this week, two contrasting realities of current-day Afghanistan were in play. Armed Taliban guards were using lengths of thick rubber hose and bamboo poles to control a crowd pressing at the gate to a compound where charity workers were handing out emergency food aid.

And on a strip of open ground alongside, a group of teenage boys were ranged around a pair of makeshift wickets, happily playing cricket. It is a sight you will see nationwide, because Afghans are cricket-mad.

This second reality has been a welcome diversion from the first this past week -- as Afghanistan gave Scotland a walloping in its opening match at the T20 Cricket World Cup in the United Arab Emirates. It was the Afghan squad's first appearance since the Taliban seized power 10 weeks ago, and amid a growing economic and humanitarian crisis in the country as international sanctions bite.

But the team's decisive 130-run victory margin last Monday had Afghans at home and abroad celebrating, giving some a moment to forget their troubles. "Definitely, when we see no other reason to smile, this match took our minds away from the situation and gave us some happiness," said cricket fan Sherullah Safi, who previously worked for Afghanistan's cricket board.

The Taliban have typically disapproved of most sports and public entertainment. That includes the game of buzkashi, still regarded as Afghanistan's official national sport, where players on horseback compete to place a goat or calf carcass in a goal. But the Taliban have made an exception for cricket.

A Taliban guard controlling access to an emergency food aid distribution in Kabul on Thursday. (Photo by Andrew North)

Most of the players now in the UAE were training as usual just days after the fall of Kabul in mid-August, and even as thousands of fellow Afghans were trying to get out on evacuation flights. And after the victory over Scotland, the Taliban joined in the celebrations.

"Congratulations to the team and wish them more success in the future," tweeted spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. "We hope for similar and even higher achievements in other fields, especially in the political, economic and scientific fields," was the more somber response from the Taliban's Qatar office.

Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban's nominee to take over Afghanistan's United Nations seat, managed a more colloquial "Well done boys!" Though it is hard to imagine such warmth for any women's sports team -- if there had been one at all.

What was missing was the street celebrations in Afghan cities that have followed past sporting triumphs -- like the football team's victory in the South Asia cup in 2013. This time, all the cheering was behind closed doors at home. "We were drinking tea while watching the match, and eating groundnuts," said Safi.

There was more atmosphere at the holding centers for those evacuated by the US military in August, as giant screens were set up for the match.

Yet when the Afghan national anthem was played in the stadium, moving team captain Mohammad Nabi to tears, it was too much for some in this new Afghan diaspora. "Watching this video surely made millions of #Afghans cry. This time, it's not for happiness but it's for the lost dreams and achievements," tweeted Rateb Noori, a well-known Afghan journalist and one of those who fled the Taliban takeover.

People playing at the cricket park in Kabul on October 22. It is a sight seen nationwide in cricket-mad Afghanistan.   © Reuters

There was controversy after the match when one Taliban official objected to seeing the distinctive black, red and green colors of the Afghan flag used by the previous government flying at such events. The tricolor flag became a symbol of protest in the early weeks of Taliban rule, as demonstrators used it to cover the movement's white flag, bearing an Islamic oath. However, the official later said he was speaking for himself.

But now comes a bigger challenge. On Friday, Afghanistan will be up against its neighbor, Pakistan, and the bookies' favorite to win the World Cup. It already has two victories in its pocket. Afghanistan has lost in their previous encounters and with another cricket heavyweight, India, in its group, it can ill afford to do so again.

There is the added charge to the match of continuing tensions beyond the cricket pitch. Some Afghans have accused Pakistan of, in effect, invading their country because of its support for the Taliban. But these issues should be kept apart, says Kabul-based NGO worker and cricket fan Rahimullah. "Cricket is sport and should not be mixed with politics at all."

For their part, Pakistani cricketers have been warning against complacency. "We should not underestimate any team in this format [T20 format], Afghanistan's team is very good," batsman and former captain Shahid Afridi told Pakistan's Geo TV this week.

"The current [Afghan] team is the best ever," says Sherullah Safi. Several Afghan players -- like Nabi and bowler Rashid Khan -- have become stars in the Indian cricket league.

They are an inspiration to the young Afghans you see playing cricket on vacant lots of land nationwide, often using homemade bats and balls. There is no avoiding the country's crisis right now, but cricket gives many Afghans a brief escape. "Best of luck Afghanistan cricket team," said Safi.

Andrew North is a journalist covering Afghanistan and was previously based in Kabul as a correspondent for the BBC.