England spinner Shoaib Bashir to travel to India after belatedly receiving visa

The uncapped 20-year-old was forced to remain in Abu Dhabi when the rest of the squad flew to India on Sunday (January 20) and subsequently returned to the UK to complete the necessary paperwork after Indian authorities delayed issuing him a visa

The Cricketer | 24/01/2024 at 13:37

England spinner Shoaib Bashir will link up with the rest of the squad in India "this weekend" after belatedly receiving his visa.

This development ruled him out of the first Test, which is scheduled to begin in Hyderabad on January 25, but he will be in contention to make his debut in Visakhapatnam next week (February 2-6).

In a statement on January 24, the ECB said: "Shoaib Bashir has now received his visa and is due to travel to join up with the team in India this weekend. We're glad the situation has now been resolved."

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^{England captain Ben Stokes described the situation as "frustrating" and "emotional" [Getty Images]}

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^{Bashir will arrive in India in time for the second Test, where he could make his debut [Getty Images]}

Bashir's plight has overshadowed the build up to the five-match series, with England captain Ben Stokes labelling the situation "frustrating" and "emotional".

"I'm pretty devastated that Bash has had to go through this. As a leader, as a captain, when one of your teammates is affected by something like that you do get a bit emotional," he said, speaking prior to the ECB's announcement.

"It's obviously a frustrating situation. And more importantly, for him. We announced our squad in mid-December, it's now January 24 and he still doesn't have a visa.

"It's unfortunate he's had to go through something like this on his first experience of being in the England team."

Surrey-born Bashir has never held a Pakistan passport but it is understood his heritage, and the tense geopolitical relations between India and Pakistan, caused the documentation delay. He applied for his visa when the squad was announced on December 11.

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