During England’s visit to India, Rehan Ahmed encountered another visa issue at Rajkot’s Hirasar airport. Due to insufficient documentation, he was unable to depart. On Monday, rumors circulated that Rehan’s single-entry visa prevented him from returning to India after the mid-series break in Abu Dhabi.
Following a short wait, the leg-spinner received a temporary fix from the local authorities. England is still optimistic that a 24-hour resolution is possible. All of the traveling team’s members and support personnel had gathered at the Rajkot team hotel by Monday night. The episode brought to light the difficulties associated with visa requirements for international cricket players of Pakistani descent visiting India.
The advice given to the England squad is to reprocess the visa, which will take place over the course of the following two days. The Hindustan Times cited a BCCI official as saying, “The player was permitted to enter the nation with the rest of the team and he will be appearing in practice on Tuesday.”
Rehan Ahmed joins the club of Shoaib Bashir’s visa dilemma
After Rehan Ahmed’s recent visa issue during England’s tour to India, which brought back memories of Shoaib Bashir’s delay many weeks prior, the difficulties associated with obtaining a visa for athletes of Pakistani descent have come to light once more. A week-long delay in Bashir’s admission to India meant he missed the first Test in Hyderabad. After a complicated trip from Abu Dhabi to the UK and back, he arrived on January 28 during the first Test in Visakhapatnam.
Rehan Ahmed, who was born in England but is also of Pakistani origin, did not initially face any problems getting a visa because he had already obtained one in October for the England 50-over World Cup team. Considering the white-ball team’s extended stay in India during the World Cup, which ended in the group stages, the incident most likely results from an administrative error on the part of the ECB. These kinds of occurrences highlight how careful preparation and organization are needed for international cricket tours.
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