There are fears that India will not grant visas to players of Pakistani origin who have participated in the T20 World Cup instead of Bangladesh.
According to Indian media reports, Scotland has started visa and other travel arrangements for the team’s timely arrival in India after being admitted to the World Cup by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
The report said that despite Scotland’s preparations, a major problem has arisen regarding Pakistani fast bowler Safyan Sharif’s visa as he may face difficulties in getting a visa compared to other players.
Previously, the American and English teams participating in the World Cup have been fighting for the visas of players of Pakistani origin and faced difficulties, so there is a fear that Safiyan Sharif will also face the same problems.
Cricket Scotland chief executive Trudy Lindblad told Kirkinfo that securing visas for the tournament is the management’s priority at the moment, and we are all working with the ICC on this.
“Getting the visas is always a bit unpredictable because sometimes it takes three days or 45 days. In the last 48 hours our focus is on visa verification so that our players are ready to go,” he said.
He said that he is in the process of submitting the application and will reach India as soon as possible.
According to the report, the Cricket Scotland chief said that the ICC is liaising with the Board of Cricket in India (BCCI) and the local administration to ensure timely visas for players traveling to India for the T20 World Cup.
He said that one team is working not only to help us, but also to help 19 other teams going to the World Cup, but now we are the center of their special attention.
Saffian Sharif, who is part of the Scotland team, has a father of Pakistani origin and a British citizen of Pakistani origin, when he was born in Huddersfield and at the age of 7, he moved to Scotland and later joined the national cricket team as a key player.
Safyan Sharif has played 90 ODIs and 75 T20Is for Scotland so far and is an integral part of his national team with 198 wickets.
It is worth mentioning that after Bangladesh refused to go to India for the World Cup due to the safety of its players, the International Cricket Council (ICC) included Scotland instead of Bangladesh.
The T20 World Cup 2026 hosted by India and Sri Lanka will begin on February 7.
