Pakistan Twenty20 champions Faisalabad Wolves to miss CLT20: report
The team that has Pakistan international stars Misbah ul-Haq and Saeed Ajmal have reportedly not got visa clearance from the Indian government to play the tournament.
Pakistan side Faisalabad Wolves will miss the 2013 Champions League Twenty20, according to media reports. The Pakistan domestic T20 champions were denied visas to play in the tournament to be held across different venues in India.
According to sources, the Indian government could not promise adequate security arrangements in the current circumstances. "As a matter of abundance precaution and caution in terms of safety and security, the government did not give green signal for the cricket team's visit," government sources said.
Led by Pakistan skipper Misbah ul-Haq, Faisalabad were scheduled to play the opening match of the qualifying round against New Zealand domestic T20 champions Otago Volts on September 17 in Mohali. A worried Pakistan Cricket Board had earlier applied to India's ministry of external affairs to get the nod to play the continental T20 championship.
The Faisalabad team's participation in the CLT20 was confirmed until the LoC issues arose and that led to tensions between the two countries.
Last year, the BCCI had invited Pakistan to send its domestic T20 champions -- Sialkot Stallions -- for the Champions League which was held in South Africa.
The Sialkot Stallions, however, failed to qualify for the main round.
This year Faisalabad Wolves, by virtue of emerging as the national T20 champions, had earned the honour of representing Pakistan in the Champions League.
This effectively also means that only three teams will be participating in the qualifiers as against four, if Faisalabad would have been allowed to play.
Last month, India had not granted visa to a Pakistani religious group to attend Urs here and suggested that they defer their visit in view of their safety and security.
(with PTI inputs)