Pakistan ‘extremely disappointed’ over Cricket World Cup visa delay by India for media and fans

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Pakistan Cricket Board has expressed “extreme disappointment” about a delay in the issuing of Indian visas to its country’s journalists and fans for the World Cup.

The chairman of the PCB management committee, Zaka Ashraf, met with Pakistan foreign secretary Syrus Sajjad Qazi on Monday and asked him to take up the matter with India’s home ministry through Pakistan’s high commission in New Delhi.

“The PCB is extremely disappointed to see that journalists from Pakistan and fans are still facing uncertainty about obtaining an Indian visa,” it said in a statement.

Around 50 Pakistan journalists, accredited by the International Cricket Council governing body, are uncertain when they will get their visas, with Pakistan scheduled to play its second game against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

The Pakistan team received its visas less than 36 hours before it was due to fly to Hyderabad via Dubai last month.

The delay in the issuing of the player visa forced the PCB to cancel a brief training camp in Dubai and the team flew straight to Hyderabad, where it played two warm-up games against New Zealand and Australia before beating the Netherlands in its first World Cup match.

The PCB said it has already reminded the ICC and the Board of Control for Cricket in India of “their respective obligations and terms and conditions stipulated in the host agreement to guarantee visas for fans and journalists of participating teams.”

The Pakistan players received a warm reception in Hyderabad and wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan said it felt at the airport as if the team had landed in Karachi or Lahore after winning a World Cup.

The PCB, however, said it has also asked its government “to evaluate player security in India.” “He (Ashraf) emphasised that the well being and safety of the Pakistan squad was of paramount importance,” the board said in the statement.

It is unclear how many Pakistan fans will be issued visas ahead of the marquee game against India to be played at the 134,000-capacity Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

Pakistani Zainab Abbas went to India as an ICC television presenter before flying home on Monday, five days into the six-week long tournament.

An ICC spokesperson said Abbas “has not been deported (but) she has left for personal reasons.”

Pakistan and India have not met in a test match since 2007 but has played against one another regularly in other formats.

Political tensions between the two countries meant India played its recent Asia Cup games in Sri Lanka after refusing to travel to Pakistan for the tournament.

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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket