Ben Stokes led England are all set to take on the hosts India for a 5-match test series, with the first encounter to be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. However, young English off-spinner Shoaib Bashir has been ruled out of the series opener owing to issues with his visa application and has returned back to UK in a bid to resolve the issue.
Bashir, a 20-year-old cricketer with Pakistani heritage, has been with the English team in UAE, training for the upcoming test series. However, while his teammates left for India, Bashir was left stranded in UAE with his visa troubles. The young English cricketer was eventually told to go to London with his passport in order to get the correct paperwork at the Indian High Commission.
Notably, Bashir isn’t the first player of Pakistani descent to have issues in procuring a visa for getting into India as relations between the two neighbours continue to remain tense. Earlier last year, Aussie batter Usman Khawaja was late in joining his teammates for the four-test series owing to similar visa troubles.
Ben Stokes reacts to Shoaib Bashir’s visa troubles:
Meanwhile, English skipper Ben Stokes has reacted to his young spinner having issues in obtaining a visa, terming the whole episode as “particularly frustrating”.
Speaking about the Bashir fiasco, Stokes said, (quoted by ESPNCricinfo), “We announced that squad in mid-December, and now Bash finds himself without a visa to get here. I am more frustrated for him. I didn’t want this type of situation to be his first experience of what it’s like to be in the England Test team. I feel for him.
“But he’s not the first cricketer to go through this, I have played with a lot of people who have had the same issues. I find it frustrating that we have picked a player and he’s not with us because of visa issues. Especially for a young lad, I’m devastated for him. It’s a frustrating situation to be in, but a lot of people have been trying to get it through. It’s unfortunate and I’m very frustrated for him.” the English skipper added.
UK Government
A spokesperson for the UK government told AFP while they could not “speak to the process and what’s happened in this individual case”, the broader issue had been raised with the Indian government.
“Our position is that British citizens should be treated fairly when going through this process.” the spokesperson said.
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Published: 24 Jan 2024, 06:56 AM IST