The Indian blind cricket team is awaiting clearance from the government to take part in the T20 World Cup in Pakistan, scheduled to take place from November 23 to December 3. India Today has the copy of the No Objection Certificate (NOC) that India got from the Sports Ministry, but it’s subject to clearance from the Ministry Of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Speaking to India Today, Shailendra Yadav, the General Secretary of Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI), said that they have been waiting for government clearance for more than two weeks.
“It’s been 15 days now that we are waiting for clearance, and we just need yes or no from the government. Last time we visited Pakistan was in 2014 for a bilateral series. In 2018, the government denied the clearance to visit Pakistan and in 2023, the Pakistan team skipped the tournament when it was held in India,” the CABI General Secretary said.
Earlier, it was learnt that the Indian men’s cricket team will not travel to Pakistan for the upcoming Champions Trophy to be held next year. The ICC, via an official mail, informed it to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
On being asked about whether the blind team should go to Pakistan, Shailendra Yadav said, “We will go by whatever the government will direct us. If they say yes, we will go and if they say no, we will not go. We just need clarity from the government.”
India have won all three editions of the Blind T20 World Cup, in 2012, 2017 and 2022. Back in 2022, India beat Bangladesh by 120 runs in the final at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
After putting up a big score of 277 for two on the board, India restricted their opponents to 157 for three. India remained unbeaten throughout the tournament.
