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Indian captain Rohit Sharma has admitted that he feels for young England off-spinner Shoaib Bashir, who has been forced to fly back home to sort out his visa issues. He, however, added that he has no control over the situation since he doesn’t sit in the visa office.
Bashir (20), who is of Pakistani heritage, had to return home from England’s training camp in Abu Dhabi to solve his visa issues. As a result, he has been ruled out of the opening Test against India, which begins in Hyderabad on Thursday, January 25.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference, Rohit empathized with Bashir, but with his usual sense of wit.
"I feel for him. Honestly, he is probably coming for the first time with the England setup. Not easy for anyone. There could be one of our guys, who wanted to come to England and has been denied or is not available to get the visa [sic]. Unfortunately, I don’t sit in the visa office to give you more details on that. But, I hope he can make it here quickly and enjoy our country; play some cricket as well," he said.
Bashir has played six first-class matches and seven List A games, claiming 10 and three wickets, respectively. As per reports, the spinner was told to return to London to discuss the matter directly with the Indian High Commission. The England team is hopeful of the cricketer joining the team over the weekend.
Meanwhile, England have named their playing XI for the first Test against India. The visitors have left out veteran pacer James Anderson and have included three spinners in Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley and Jack Leach.
England’s playing XI for 1st Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (captain), Ben Foakes (wk), Rehan Ahmed, Mark Wood, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach.
Ben Stokes reacts to Shoaib Bashir's visa issue
England captain Ben Stokes has expressed his disappointment over the visa issue surrounding Bashir, stating that it’s not good for a youngster to go through such a thing.
"I didn't want this type of situation to be his first experience of what it's like to be in the England Test team, especially for a young lad, I'm devastated for him. As captain, I find it particularly frustrating. We announced the squad in mid-December, and now Bash finds himself without a visa to get here. He's not the first cricketer to go through this,” Stokes was quoted as saying by AP.
“I have played with a lot of people who have had the same issues. I find it frustrating that we have picked a player, and he's not with us because of visa issues. It's a frustrating situation to be in, but a lot of people have been trying to get it through,” he added.
England will play five Tests in India from January 25 to March 11 in what is expected to be a closely contested affair.
