Shoaib Bashir has flown back to the UK and has been ruled out of Thursday’s first Test against India in Hyderabad as a visa delay prevents the England rookie from traveling with his new team-mates The country.
Surrey-born Bashir, who is just 20 and making his first senior tour of England, has become the latest Pakistani traditional cricketer to suffer visa delays on his way to India. Moeen Ali and Saqib Mahmood have gone through similar experiences in the past, as did Australia’s Usman Khawaja before his team’s Test tour last year.
England believe the issue – which means Bashir is unable to start from the team’s pre-series training camp in Abu Dhabi – will be resolved in time for the Somerset spinner to join the squad on Tuesday. Instead, he must now return to the country where his British passport was issued, with his target of arriving in India this weekend revised.
Speaking ahead of the first of the five-match series in the series as his side aim to end India’s 11-year unbeaten run at home, Ben Stokes said: “I’m shocked for him. As captain I find it particularly frustrating that we’ve picked a player and he’s not with us because of visa issues.
“We announced the squad in mid-December but now Bash finds himself here without a visa. I don’t want this to be his first taste of the England Test team.
I have feelings for him. But he is not the first cricketer to go through this. I’ve played with a lot of people who have the same problem. “
Although Bashir has played just six first-class games in his career, the spinner impressed during his preparations for England and at the Lions training camp in Abu Dhabi at the end of last year. He is expected to make his debut.
However, despite Bashir applying for a visa on December 11 – and all other applications from the England tour group being approved in time – Bashir has returned home and faces further paperwork. A representative from the England and Wales Cricket Board will meet and assist him upon his arrival in London.
The British government will not comment on Bashir’s case. But a Downing Street spokesman said: “More broadly, we do expect India to always treat British citizens fairly during the visa process. We have previously raised the issue of British citizens of Pakistani origin… We have raised the concerns raised by some on their experience in applying for visas to the Indian High Commission in London.”
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Bashir’s absence means Lancashire’s Tom Hartley is likely to make his Test debut as second left-arm spinner alongside the returning Jack Leach. Rehan Ahmed is another option, also a leg-spinner of Pakistani origin, but he has been on a visa since being named as a World Cup alternate in October last year.
Despite the obvious frustration from the English camp over the situation with Bashir, the ECB has refrained from publicly issuing any criticism. The Board of Control for Cricket in India is said to be lobbying the relevant authorities, but despite its close ties to India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, the governing body has been unable to expedite matters.
Elsewhere, Stokes confirmed that Ben Foakes will return as the team’s wicketkeeper after Jonny Bairstow was ruled out of Ashes plans last summer as he recovers from an ankle injury. Harry Brooke flew home due to personal reasons and his departure means Bairstow will play at number five as a specialist batsman.
Dan Lawrence, named as Brooke’s replacement, has arrived in India but only with injury or illness ruling out the other batsman ahead of Thursday’s match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Next, he will play.
