ahamednishadh
08-16-2009, 11:06 PM
Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) chairman Syed Sultan Shah demanded on Saturday that the Blind Cricket World Cup 2011 be shifted from England after the Pakistan team was denied visas to play four matches there as part of preparation for the tournament.
The reigning world champions were due to tour England from August 9-18 to play three one-dayers and a Twenty20 game as part of their build-up for the World Cup. However, the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) denied the team visas earlier this week because it was not convinced the players would return to Pakistan once the tour was over.
The PBCC chairman said he has complained to the India-based World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC) about the visa refusal and demanded the World Cup to be re-located. “We are protesting this with the WBCC. We are demanding that the World Cup be shifted from England because Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka will also face the same problem, so why stage an international event in a country which will not give us visas,” he told media.
He said it was ridiculous that the UK visa authorities said they were concerned players would not return to Pakistan and that they did not have sufficient income. “It is insulting, how can a blind man run away when he can’t go anywhere without help?” he added. Pakistan is one of the top nations in the ten-member WBCC, having finished runners-up in the inaugural World Cup in 1998 and winning the next two editions, 2002 in Chennai and 2006 in Islamabad. Sultan was the first Pakistan blind cricket team captain. “Most of our players are well-off with government jobs and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was sponsoring us for the tour so where does the question of income arise?” he said.
The UKBA maintained it was justified in refusing the team visas. “We will make no apology for maintaining tough border controls created to prevent abuse of the immigration system,” it was quoted as saying by the British Broadcast Corporation BBC. “If applications do not contain the necessary evidence and we are not satisfied individuals will return at the end of their visit, their visas will be refused.”
Sultan said they visited England in 2002 and 2006 and had no problem. “We have toured a lot of countries and not even a single player has ever stayed back,” he added. “This tour would have given us an opportunity to prepare for the World Cup but now I am worried we won’t be able to defend our title,” he concluded.
-DailyTimes Pakistan
The reigning world champions were due to tour England from August 9-18 to play three one-dayers and a Twenty20 game as part of their build-up for the World Cup. However, the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) denied the team visas earlier this week because it was not convinced the players would return to Pakistan once the tour was over.
The PBCC chairman said he has complained to the India-based World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC) about the visa refusal and demanded the World Cup to be re-located. “We are protesting this with the WBCC. We are demanding that the World Cup be shifted from England because Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka will also face the same problem, so why stage an international event in a country which will not give us visas,” he told media.
He said it was ridiculous that the UK visa authorities said they were concerned players would not return to Pakistan and that they did not have sufficient income. “It is insulting, how can a blind man run away when he can’t go anywhere without help?” he added. Pakistan is one of the top nations in the ten-member WBCC, having finished runners-up in the inaugural World Cup in 1998 and winning the next two editions, 2002 in Chennai and 2006 in Islamabad. Sultan was the first Pakistan blind cricket team captain. “Most of our players are well-off with government jobs and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was sponsoring us for the tour so where does the question of income arise?” he said.
The UKBA maintained it was justified in refusing the team visas. “We will make no apology for maintaining tough border controls created to prevent abuse of the immigration system,” it was quoted as saying by the British Broadcast Corporation BBC. “If applications do not contain the necessary evidence and we are not satisfied individuals will return at the end of their visit, their visas will be refused.”
Sultan said they visited England in 2002 and 2006 and had no problem. “We have toured a lot of countries and not even a single player has ever stayed back,” he added. “This tour would have given us an opportunity to prepare for the World Cup but now I am worried we won’t be able to defend our title,” he concluded.
-DailyTimes Pakistan