NEW DELHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has intervened to assist with visa arrangements for all 42 players and officials of Pakistani origin who are set to travel to India for the T20 World Cup.

Among England's squad, spinners Adil Rashid and Rehan Ahmed, along with pacer Saqib Mahmood, are of Pakistani descent. The USA will have Ali Khan and Shayan Jahangir, while the Netherlands squad includes Zulfiqar Saqib.

According to PTI, visas have already been approved for England's Rashid, Rehan, and Saqib. Members of the Netherlands squad have also received their clearances, and Canada's team official Shah Saleem Zafar has been granted a visa as well.

Visa arrangements are currently being processed for players and officials of Pakistani nationality or origin from teams representing the United Arab Emirates, the United States, Italy, Bangladesh, and Canada.

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Appointments for these visas have already been scheduled for early next week, signaling that the process is entering its final stage. All participants are required to have their visas issued by the deadline of January 31.

These clearances are seen as an important early step, given the diverse representation of players of Pakistani descent across associate and full-member nations.

The ICC exercise covers cricketers, officials and standby personnel across multiple teams, underlining the governing body’s attempt to pre-empt any last-minute complications ahead of the global event.

The ICC, which is overseeing the coordination process, has remained in constant communication with Indian High Commissions in multiple cities across continents.

The aim has been to ensure that visa applications for the remaining players and officials are handled efficiently and without procedural delays.

The council has received assurances that the pending cases will be processed smoothly within the stipulated timelines.

With visa facilitation progressing as planned, the ICC believes that all participating teams will be fully prepared from a logistical standpoint before the tournament gets underway on February 7.

India visa applicants from Pakistan origin attract more scrutiny and processing times are longer than usual.

(With PTI Inputs)