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The English pacer is facing visa issues ahead of an India tour for the third time in his career.
Saqib Mahmood (R) of England celebrates the dismissal of Evin Lewis of West Indies during the 3rd T20I between England and West Indies at Darren Sammy Cricket Ground, Gros Islet, Saint Lucia, on November 14, 2024. (Photo by Randy Brooks / AFP)
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has reportedly been forced to cancel the flight tickets for fast-bowler Saqib Mahmood because he’s yet to get his visa for England’s upcoming white-ball tour of India.
According to the Daily Mail, Mahmood’s passport is still with the Indian Embassy and he has been left stranded at home.
He has also missed out on England’s pre-planned fast-bowling camp in the UAE ahead of the tour which is being attended by Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse, Mark Wood and pace bowling mentor James Anderson. The trip was arranged due to the freezing conditions in the UK, which have also hindered Mahmood’s practice.
The squad is supposed to leave for India on January 17, five days before the first T20I at the Eden Gardens. Mahmood is still waiting for a resolution, but whether that happens or not remains to be seen. The ECB hasn’t made a comment.
Mahmood, who was born to British-Pakistani parents, has not faced this issue for the first time, nor is the first Pakistani-origin cricketer to do so. He was denied visa last year when Lancashire visited India and couldn’t tour with the England Lions in 2019, which had led to voices of concern from the ECB.
“I was concerned,” Tom Harrison, the ECB’s then-chief executive had said in 2019. “We worked closely with the BCCI to try and get Saqib a visa. But these are difficult issues and very political. We can kick and scream all we like but these are issues that are sensitive and I’m not going to make a clumsy comment about it.”
“It’s very disappointing because he’s a young bowler who’s missed out on a really exciting opportunity which would develop him,” Ashley Giles, at the time, the director of England men’s cricket, had said. “I’m not sure there’s much I can do but it’s important we keep dialogue open that tries to mitigate this sort of stuff in the future.
Spinners Shoib Bashir and Rehan Ahmed also got their visas after a lengthy to-and-fro for the five-Test series against India in early 2024.
England will play five T20Is and three ODIs against India.
