The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced that India has finally granted the Pakistan team visas, putting an end to the uncertainty surrounding Pakistan's participation in the much anticipated ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023.
The certification from the ICC followed concerns about a delay in the visa issue procedure.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) complained in writing to the ICC that the team's preparation for the tournament across the border had been hampered by a visa delay.
An ICC official informed Reuters that "visas have been issued to the Pakistan team," but did not provide any other information.
They have been instructed to pick up their passports at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, PCB spokesperson Umar Farooq told Reuters.
Due to strained political ties between the neighbors, India and Pakistan have discontinued their bilateral cricket matches and now only compete against each other in multi-team competitions like the World Cup and Asia Cup.
Farooq previously criticized the "inequitable treatment" meted out to a Pakistani team, who are expected to arrive in India on Wednesday, in a sharply worded statement.
"There has been an extraordinary delay in getting clearance and securing Indian visas for the Pakistan team for the ICC World Cup," Farooq stated in the statement.
“We wrote to the ICC to express our concerns over Pakistan's unfair treatment and to remind them of their commitments in relation to the World Cup. It is disappointing that the Pakistani squad has to deal with uncertainty before a major competition,” he added.
Pakistan will play two warm-up matches before starting their World Cup campaign against the Netherlands on October 6.
India and Pakistan are scheduled to face off in a tantalizing match on October 14 in Ahmedabad.
India chose to play their matches in Sri Lanka during the Asia Cup, which took place from August 30 to September 17, rather than touring Pakistan.