TORONTO – Canada have pleaded with the International Cricket Council to help their three Pakistan-born players obtain visas to enter India for the World Cup which gets underway on February 19. Vice-captain Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan and Hamza Tariq are all still waiting for their India visas.
The delay has prompted Cricket Canada to demand that the schedule, which has the team playing four of their six group games in India, be altered so that matches are switched to co-hosts Bangladesh and Sri Lanka if the problem persists. In a letter to ICC president Sharad Pawar, Cricket Canada president Ranjit Saini requested that all efforts be made to solve the impasse.
“We seek your kind help and attention to this matter in assisting our players to obtain their visa in Dubai, Dhaka or Colombo,” said Saini. “We also do hope that ICC have contingency plans to ensure that the matches are played elsewhere if the visa is not processed on time or rejected all together.”
The Canada squad will spend 10 days in Dubai in a training camp before the tournament begins. In Dubai they will play warm-up matches against Ireland and Afghanistan before taking on Bangladesh and England in Bangladesh in further warm-up clashes.
Canada are in Group A at the World Cup along with holders Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Kenya. Their first match is on February 20 against Sri Lanka at Hambantota.
ICC reject plea to reinstate Eden Gardens: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has rejected the Indian board’s request to keep Eden Gardens in Kolkata as the venue for the World Cup match between India and England on Feb. 27.
The governing body has also asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to confirm an alternative venue by the end of this month, ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat told Reuters on Saturday. “We have replied to (BCCI President) Mr (Shashank) Manohar’s request last night and we have not agreed,” Lorgat, who is in Hong Kong, said by phone.
“We declined the request to extend the deadline because it’s not feasible for us to do so. “We would like to know the alternative venue by no later than Jan. 31 because we have to make all the logistic arrangements at the new venue.” Kolkata was dropped on Thursday as the venue of the high-profile group match after an ICC venue inspection team found Eden Gardens under-prepared due to a delay in rennovation work.
The Cricket Association of Bengal, which has its headquarters at Eden Gardens, asked the ICC through the BCCI to give another extension, promising to have the work completed by Feb. 7. Lorgat had no such worries about Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, venue of the April 2 final and two other matches, which has been given two weeks to complete finishing works.
