Monitoring Desk
LONDON: England bowler Shoaib Bashir’s arrival in India for the five-match Test series has been delayed by visa issues, head coach Brendon McCullum said.
Shoaib Bashir, who is of Pakistani heritage, is one of three uncapped players named in the England squad for the upcoming series, which kicks off in Hyderabad on Thursday.
“He’s got a couple of issues with his visa coming through… we’re confident on the back of the help from the (Indian cricket board) and the Indian government that it will sort itself out pretty quickly as well,” McCullum told reporters.
People of Pakistani origin are required to submit additional details for obtaining an Indian visa, according to the website of the Indian High Commission in London.
In February, visa issues delayed Australian batter Usman Khawaja’s arrival in India. In September, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wrote to the ICC alleging delay in issuing visas for the Pakistan team ahead of the 50-over World Cup in India.
McCullum said he hoped the 20-year-old spinner would join the rest of the team on Tuesday. “We’re hoping the news will come through today that his visa has been approved, then we’ll get him to sink his teeth into this series,” he added.
The England squad, who had been holding a training camp in the United Arab Emirates ahead of Thursday’s start of the first Test in Hyderabad, were already a man down after batsman Harry Brook returned home for personal reasons.
And they were reduced to 14 men when Somerset off-spinner Bashir, whose parents are of Pakistani heritage, was unable to join his team-mates on the flight to India.
Bashir, 20, was a surprise selection for the tour given he has taken a mere 10 first-class wickets at an expensive average of 67.
But the England management were impressed by his performances for the second-string Lions in the UAE and they believe his high release point, allied to an ability to gain sharp turn, will make him effective on Indian pitches renowned for assisting spinners.
