England cricketer Rehan Ahmed faces Visa hurdle, delayed entry into India: Report
England cricketer Rehan Ahmed encounters a visa obstacle, delaying his entry into India. The spinner was stopped at Hirasar airport in Rajkot due to a visa issue, prompting local authorities to grant a temporary 2-day visa.
FollowEngland spinner Rehan Ahmed encountered a visa issue that prevented his entry into India along with his teammates. This incident comes approximately 10 days after England spinner Shoaib Bashir faced a similar visa controversy. Rehan was halted at Hirasar airport in Rajkot during the 10-day break between the second and third Test matches in Abu Dhabi. The cricketer reportedly possessed only a single-entry visa, leading to his detention at the airport. Local authorities managed to grant him a 2-day visa as a temporary solution, urging the England camp to resolve the matter completely within the next two days.
To clarify, a person with a single-entry visa is restricted from exiting and re-entering the country.
Despite this setback, the England team expresses optimism that the issue will be fully resolved within the next 24 hours. Apart from Rehan, other squad members and support staff faced no problems and reached their hotel in Rajkot by Monday evening.
“The England team has been advised to process the visa again, which will be happening in the next two days. The player was allowed to enter the country with the rest of the team and he will be appearing in practice on Tuesday,” stated a BCCI official, as reported by Hindustan Times.
This marks the first instance of an international flight landing directly in Rajkot, prompting the setup of a temporary immigration counter. Officials from Jamnagar oversaw the situation. Out of the 31 members in the England contingent, only Rehan encountered visa-related issues.
In contrast to Bashir, Rehan faced no complications during his initial entry into India with the rest of the England squad. With three more Tests in the series, England is keen to promptly resolve Rehan's visa issue, as the next match is scheduled to begin on February 15.
