IND vs ENG: Spinner Shoaib Bashir’s arrival in India delayed due to visa issues

In a major development for England ahead of their five-game Test series against India, the squad touched down in Hyderabad with the first Test around the corner without uncapped spinner Shoaib Bashir. The 20-year-old had to stay grounded in Abu Dhabi due to his visa issues. The Test squad was already without a man ahead of the India series, as star batter Harry Brook pulled out, citing personal reasons. The reason for Bashir’s visa problems was a hold-up with his paperwork.

Being from Pakistan background, Bashir was the only player in the squad who faced such problems, and it is worth noting that earlier, there were reports of Pakistani fans and media personnel facing issues gaining visas to make it to India for the ODI World Cup 2023.

Meanwhile, the Indian contingent also received a shocker, as star batter Virat Kohli has opted out of the first two Tests. According to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the New Delhi-born has taken the step citing some personal reasons. The cricket board also ensured that they will soon announce a replacement for Kohli for the games, before he comes back to play in the Rajkot Test.

Bash will join us, hopefully tomorrow: Brendon McCullum

Speaking of the situation, England’s Test head coach Brendon McCullum came forward to reckon that Bashir should be joining the side soon and hoped that the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) and the Indian government would provide him the needed support to clear his visa issues.

“Bash will join us hopefully tomorrow, he’s got a couple of issues with his visa coming through, we’re confident on the back of the help from the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) and the Indian government that it will sort itself out pretty quickly as well,” Brendon McCullum was quoted as saying by Belfast Telegraph.

“Things take time, don’t they? Everyone is doing what they can. It’s a process we need to go through, and we’re pretty confident that we’re close. We’ve also got a little bit of support out there for him so he’s not on his own, 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.