Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani emphasised that India is obligated to grant visas to Pakistan cricket fans for the ICC World Cup 2023 according to the International Cricket Council (ICC) regulations.
India already delayed visas for Pakistan's national cricket team players and staff. They finally issued visas to the Pakistan team on Monday ending uncertainty surrounding Pakistan's participation in the tournament.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had written to the International Cricket Council (ICC) complaining about a visa delay.
Furthermore, this delay disrupted the Pakistani team's pre-tournament preparations, as they were unable to convene in Dubai for a "team-bonding trip."
"As per ICC rules, providing visas to the fans is mandatory," the foreign minister made the remark during a press conference in Islamabad on Thursday.
He added that Pakistani fans must get Indian visas and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will take up the matter with the ICC.
It must be noted Pakistan team received a warm welcome upon arrival in India on Wednesday for the ICC World Cup 2023.
The heartwarming moments were shared by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on its official social media channels on Thursday.
Pakistan team took part in a training session at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad, on Thursday.
This was Pakistan’s first training session after arriving on Indian shores for the ICC World Cup 2023.
The majority of the Pakistan players took part in the session, which included captain Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Iftikhar Ahmed, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali.
Pakistan will play two warm-up matches before beginning their World Cup campaign against the Netherlands on October 6.
Arch-rivals India and Pakistan are set to clash in a mouth-watering October 14 contest in Ahmedabad.
Pakistan squad for ICC World Cup 2023
Babar Azam (c), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, M Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha.
Travelling reserves: Mohammad Haris, Abrar Ahmed, Zaman Khan.
Schedule of Pakistan's warm-up matches:
September 29 — vs New Zealand in Hyderabad
October 3 — vs Australia in Hyderabad
Pakistan's schedule for the ICC World Cup 2023:
October 6 — vs Netherlands in Hyderabad
October 10 — vs Sri Lanka in Hyderabad
October 14 — vs India in Ahmedabad
October 20 — vs Australia in Bengaluru
October 23 — vs Afghanistan in Chennai
October 27 — vs South Africa in Chennai
October 31 — vs Bangladesh in Kolkata
November 4 — vs New Zealand Bengaluru (Day match)
November 11 — vs England in Kolkata
The day matches which will start at 10:00am Pakistan Standard Time (PST) while all other matches will be day-night fixtures starting at 01:30pm (PST).
If Pakistan qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Kolkata.
If India qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Mumbai unless playing against Pakistan, in which case they will play in Kolkata.
