Commonwealth Games 2018: Amritpal Singh faces visa issues even after Indian basketball squad leaves for Australia

The Indian basketball team
The Indian basketball team

What's the story?

In what could turn out to be a major blow for the Indian contingent in the Basketball events as part of the Commonwealth Games, star player Amritpal Singh's inability to travel owing to visa issues could pose to be a huge problem.

Apart from the 26-year old, it is learned that head coach Zoran Visic and women's team coach Rajinder Singh have also been held back in the country citing the same reasons.

In case you didn't know...

The Indian Basketball men's and women's teams are set to take part in the 2018 Commonwealth Games which is taking place at Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia from 4th-15th April 2018.

In what will pan out to be only the second time that basketball is set to feature in the Commonwealth Games since the last edition in 2006, the Indian team was set to arrive at Gold Coast three weeks ahead of the competition to practice and take part in warm-up games.

The heart of the matter

Amritsar's Amritpal Singh is one of the most experienced players in the side with a unique feat of being the only Indian-born to feature in the National Basketball League, one that he achieved when he represented the Sydney Kings in the competition.

Serbian coach Zoran Visic, who himself has bundles of game time to his credit, also missed out on traveling, owing to visa issues The 61-year old, who has been at the helm of the Indian Men's team since 2017 will hope to reach his wards soon, to prepare for the tough competition ahead.

When quizzed about the issue at hand, Basketball Federation of India General Secretary Chander Mukhi Sharma said

"These visa issues are matters concerning the Indian Olympic Association. They are the ones taking care of these things. We are merely responsible for naming the basketball squad and contingent", opting to lay the blame on the Indian Olympic Association for this unfortunate mishap.

The Indian men's team is pooled with England, Cameroon, and Scotland in Group B while the women's team will battle it out alongside New Zealand, Jamaica, and Malaysia in Pool B.

What's next?

With the Commonwealth Games just around the corner, the IOA will hope to take some action to ensure that Amritpal along with the coaches reaches Australia in time to start preparations well ahead of time.

Author's take

Given the magnitude of the Commonwealth Games, the authorities responsible for the problem should undoubtedly ensure that the rest of the contingent reaches in time such that the team is prepared for the grueling competition ahead.

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Edited by Akhilesh Tirumala