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With just a few days left for the World Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday raised concerns regarding “extraordinary delays” in the issuance of Indian visas for the national team with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
“We have written to ICC raising our concerns about inequitable treatment towards Pakistan and reminding them of these obligations towards the World Cup,” PCB spokesperson Umar Farooq told a private TV channel.
“It’s a matter of disappointment that the Pakistan team has to go through the uncertainty ahead of the major tournament.”
Farooq said the board had been reminding the ICC about obligations for the last three years but it had all come down to the last two days with the national team’s first warm game scheduled on September 29.
“We were forced to cancel our original plan to organise team-building exercises in Dubai on the way to India. We have had to rework our plan and book new flights, but these plans are subject issuance of visas,” the spokesperson added.
According to sources the application for visas was reportedly made over a week ago. However, Pakistan are yet to get their visas less than 48 hours before flying out to India.
Due to visa delays, the team has already canceled its pre-World Cup team bonding event in Dubai. It has also emerged that Pakistan is the only participating team — of the nine teams traveling to India for the event — yet to receive visas.
