29 January,2011 10:14 AM IST | | AFP
Canada have pleaded with the International Cricket Council to help their three Pakistan-born players obtain visas to enter India for the World Cup which gets underway on February 19.
Vice-captain Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan and Hamza Tariq are all still waiting for their India visas.
The delay has prompted Cricket Canada to demand that the schedule, which has the team playing four of their six group games in India, be altered so that matches are switched to co-hosts Bangladesh and Sri Lanka if the problem persists.
In a letter to ICC president Sharad Pawar, Cricket Canada president Ranjit Saini requested that all efforts be made to solve the impasse.
"We seek your kind help and attention to this matter in assisting our players to obtain their visa in Dubai, Dhaka or Colombo," said Saini.
"We also do hope that ICC have contingency plans to ensure that the matches are played elsewhere if the visa is not processed on time or rejected all together."
The Canada squad will spend 10 days in Dubai in a training camp before the tournament begins.
In Dubai they will play warm-up matches against Ireland and Afghanistan before taking on Bangladesh and England in Bangladesh in further warm-up clashes.
Canada are in Group A at the World Cup along with holders Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Kenya.
Their first match is on February 20 against Sri Lanka at Hambantota.
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