Scotland remains optimistic about visa clearance for T20 World Cup in India

NEW DELHI: Cricket Scotland is optimistic about getting Indian visas for its players, including fast bowler Safyaan Sharif, who has Pakistani heritage, in time for the T20 World Cup opener on February 7.

Cricket Scotland’s CEO, Trudy Lindblade, said that the ICC can only give assurances on the bits they can control, and they are working to ensure Scotland’s team gets the necessary visas.

The team is preparing to travel to India and is focused on sorting out all logistical details. Scotland were the beneficiaries of Bangladesh’s last-minute withdrawal from the T20 World Cup as the highest-ranked team that had not already qualified.

Scotland on Monday unveiled a 15-man squad set to fly to India later this week. Cricket Scotland is confident that Sharif, who was born in Huddersfield to a Pakistani father and a British-Pakistani mother before moving to Scotland aged seven, will be granted a visa in time for the team’s opening match against the West Indies in Kolkata on February 7.

“We are all committed [to] working with the ICC to make that happen. The visa piece is always slightly unknown, and it doesn’t matter whether you’ve got three days or whether you’ve got 45 days,” Trudy Lindblade, Cricket Scotland’s chief executive, said as per ESPNcricinfo.

“Certainly that’s been our focus in the last 48 hours: just getting those visas done so our players are all ready to go. They’re all in the middle of submitting their visas, and we will be there on the ground in India as quickly as we can, so it’s just a matter of time now,” he added.

“[The ICC] can only give us the assurances of the bits that they can control and, absolutely, of the bits that they control, we are working with the,m and obviously they’re working with the BCCI and local people on the ground there to make sure that we are getting all of that support that we need,” Lindblade said.

“So, absolutely, [they have given] the assurance that they can provide of things that were in their control. There is a team working very, very hard to not just help us, but to help 19 other teams as well that are also going to the World Cup. But we are their intense focus right now,” Lindblade concluded.

The European side was added to the T20 World Cup after the ICC replaced Bangladesh with them after the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) refusal to send its team to India for the marquee tournament due to security concerns.

Scotland will be captained by captain Richie Berrington and has previously participated in six of the nine editions of the T20 World Cup (2007, 2009, 2016, 2021, 2022, 2024). Scotland has been placed in Group C and will face England, Italy, Nepal, and the West Indies. Their opening fixture will take place on 7th February at Eden Gardens against the West Indies.

Steve Snell, Cricket Scotland Head of Performance, is optimistic that the team is ready for the varying challenges of playing in the sub-continent conditions. “The coaching staff, selectors, and I are all really excited about the squad that has been picked. We feel it’s well-balanced and caters for a lot of different scenarios and challenges that the team will face in India,” Snell said as quoted by ICC.

“There’s obviously a great opportunity for Zainullah Ihsan, and whenever he’s played at youth level or for the “A” squad, he’s shown an exciting range of skills and bowled at genuine pace. We’re delighted for him and excited to see how he performs on his first international tour,” Snell said.

“Oli Davidson has worked tirelessly on his skills and shown tremendous desire and work ethic in recent months to improve, and he also thoroughly deserves his call-up. All the players are really excited to take on the best in the world and grasp the opportunity that has been afforded to them. The squad is full of high-quality cricketers ready to perform, and they are keen to make an impact on the big stage,” Snell added.

Scotland squad for T20 World Cup: Richie Berrington (capt), Tom Bruce, Matthew Cross, Brad Currie, Oli Davidson, Chris Greaves, Zainullah Ihsan, Michael Jones, Michael Leask, Finlay McCreath, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Mark Watt, Brad Wheal
Travelling reserves: Jasper Davidson, Jack Jarvis
Non-travelling reserves: Mackenzie Jones, Chris McBride, Charlie Tear. (ANI)