The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has complained to the International Cricket Council (ICC) about the delay in getting the team’s 2023 World Cup visas from India.
PCB raises concerns with ICC: Despite having a flight to India booked for Wednesday morning, Pakistan was still waiting for their visas as of Monday night. Their tournament preparations have been hampered by this.
The cricket body stated in a statement on Monday, “We have written to the ICC highlighting our concerns over unfair treatment against Pakistan and reminding them of these commitments towards the World Cup.
The PCB has issued a warning, stating that this delay is intolerable and may compromise Pakistan’s ability to compete in the World Cup. They have also urged the ICC to step in and make sure the team can depart for India on time.
“It is disappointing that the Pakistani squad has deal with uncertainty before a major competition. Since we started reminding them of their responsibilities three years ago, our first warm-up game has been the deciding factor.
The Pakistani team will take against New Zealand in Hyderabad on Friday in their opening exhibition match. If the visa issue remains unresolved, they might have to miss the game.
The cricket body added that it had to abandon its initial intention to hold team-building activities in Dubai while travelling to India.
“We have had to rework our plan and book new flights, but these plans are subject to the issuance of visas,” the statement continued.
“Visa Application Process for Pakistan Cricket Team Commences Following ICC Invitation”
The PCB claims that after receiving an invitation letter from the ICC at the end of August, the procedure for getting visas for the Pakistan cricket team got underway. A requirement of the visa application procedure is the invitation letter.
The Pakistan squad was travelling to and from Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup, which Pakistan was officially hosting, so the PCB initially tried to submit visa applications without physical passports. However, the PCB eventually discovered that passports were necessary, and on September 19, shortly after the team’s return from the Asia Cup, they submitted the visa applications.