The rising tension at the Line of Control has left the Pakistan Cricket Board worried about the participation of their team Faisalabad Wolves in the qualifying round of the Champions League Twenty20, to be played in India from September 17.
A senior PCB official said they will start the procedure for obtaining visas for the Faisalabad team after the Eid holidays.
“We have been reading reports about stories in the Indian media regarding the participation of the Faisalabad team in the Champions League and we want to be sure they will be no problems in their going to India,” the official said.
“We have collected the passports of the Faisalabad players and after the Eid holidays we will start the process for obtaining visas for them,” the official said.
“We will be in touch with the Indian board and we are hopeful there should be no problems in the team getting visas,” he added.
The official also confirmed that so far the PCB has got no advice from the government on sending the team to India.
“Our government’s policy has been clear on sporting ties with India,” he noted.
In an audacious and provocative attack, Pakistani troops entered Indian territory along the Line of Control in the Poonch sector in Jammu and Kashmir on August 5 and ambushed a patrol killing five Indian soldiers, leading to rise in tension at the LOC.
The Faisalabad team are led by Pakistan captain Misbah-ul Haq who is expected to directly fly to India from Zimbabwe to join the team. Last year, the BCCI had allowed Pakistan to send their champion Twenty20 team to the Champions League qualifying rounds.