The Pakistan football team is still waiting for their visas to travel to India for the SAFF Championship in Bengaluru. The visas were expected to be issued today, but sources indicate there may be a delay until tomorrow.
The opening match of the tournament is scheduled between Pakistan and the host country, India, on Wednesday, June 21. Pakistani team insists on rescheduling the match due to insufficient rest for players arriving from Mauritius.
“We are still waiting for the visas. We have been informed that they might be issued tomorrow,” a source close to the Pakistan football team shared with the private channel.
“If the visas are issued tomorrow [June 20] before 12 pm [Mauritius time], we would be able to depart by 5:30 pm. However, this means that we would reach Bengaluru in the early hours of Wednesday via a connecting flight from Mumbai.”
Concerns over Scheduling:
“It would be unfair to the Pakistan team if they have to play such a high-intensity match on the same day after extensive travelling. In my opinion, the match should be rescheduled.”
On the other hand, the SAFF General Secretary, Anwarul Haque, previously confirmed that the Pakistan-India match cannot be rescheduled. Speaking to News9 Sports, Haq also mentioned that Pakistan’s matches could be cancelled if they don’t arrive on time for the tournament.
“The match is on Wednesday. Hopefully, they can arrive by Monday,” Haq stated on Sunday.
“The match cannot be rescheduled. It’s out of the question because that would mean rescheduling the other matches, which is impossible.”
“In case they cannot come, we will have to cancel Pakistan’s matches.”
It is important to note that the Pakistan team was originally scheduled to depart from Mauritius to India on Sunday at 11:30 am. However, they were instructed by Indian authorities to reschedule their departure and delay it until Monday.
The SAFF Championship will take place from June 21 to July 4, with India as the defending champions.
Pakistan football team schedule in the SAFF Championship:
June 21 – India, June 24 – Kuwait, June 27 – Nepal