Image Source- ICC
Zaka Ashraf, the head of the PCB, has expressed
“serious concerns and alarm” about the ongoing holdup in granting
Pakistani cricket fans and journalists travel visas for the World Cup in India.
Although Pakistan has been complaining about the delays for some time and the
board has written to the ICC about it, this is the first official statement
made since the competition began.
Pakistan has already played one game at the World Cup,
losing to the Netherlands in Hyderabad. On Tuesday, they will play Sri Lanka at
the same location. And on October 14, they play India in Ahmedabad in what is
arguably the most eagerly awaited match in the league stage of the competition.
However, it appears that there may not be quite as many Pakistanis present as
there have been in the press box and the stands thus far.
“The PCB is extremely disappointed to see that
journalists from Pakistan and fans are still facing uncertainty about obtaining
an Indian visa to cover Pakistan games in ICC World Cup 2023,” a statement
from the board said. “In the meantime, PCB has again reminded ICC and BCCI
of their respective obligations.
“The PCB has also taken serious notice of
security threats being reported in Indian media and requested the government to
evaluate players security in India. The well-being and safety of the Pakistan
squad was of paramount importance.”
Speaking to an independent journalist in Pakistan,
former PCB chairman (and ICC president) Ehsan Mani said that the ICC and BCCI
had guaranteed that visas for Pakistani nationals would not be an issue.
“Any country that hosts an ICC event signs up to
a hosting agreement that clearly says the host country will facilitate the
visas of the team, officials, journalists and fans,” Mani said. “The
ICC should have ensured before the event started that the visas were issued.
Between 2019 and 2021, I mentioned in board meetings to both the BCCI and the
ICC that visas should be facilitated. Both promised that this would be no
problem.
“It is an ICC event, and they should have ensured
all of this was resolved before the World Cup started.”