IND vs ENG: Ben Stokes thanks BCCI for resolving Rehan Ahmed's visa issue quickly

England wrist-spinner Rehan Ahmed’s visa issue was finally resolved on Wednesday, February 14 ahead of the third Test in Rajkot. Notably, the 19-year-old had issues returning to India after England’s ten-day break in Abu Dhabi. Ahmed, who’s of Pakistani descent, had a single-entry visa after arriving in Rajkot but was able to complete his paperwork a day ahead of the third Test.

The issue got resolved after the intervention by the Indian Government and BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India). Following the incident, England captain Ben Stokes thanked the BCCI and the Indian government for sorting the issue quickly.

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"For any individual having to wait for that is always an anxious period, but thankfully, we got it through this morning, and great job from the guys at the airport for giving him his visa to get through initially, and everyone at the BCCI and the government to get the visa quickly. We do not have to worry anymore about those issues, we were very confident that we would get the visa for Rehan before the game started," Stokes was quoted as saying by Times of India.

Ahmed is the second-highest wicket-taker of the series so far for England with eight wickets to his name from four innings at an average of 36.37.

Ahead of the series, England off-spinner Shoaib Bashir’s arrival in India was also delayed due to visa issues ahead of the series as he arrived in the country on Day 3 of the first Test in Hyderabad. He finally made his debut in the second Test played in Visakhapatnam and picked four wickets giving away 196 runs across two innings.

England make one change in Playing XI for third Test

Meanwhile, England have made one change to their playing XI ahead of the third Test bringing in speedster Mark Wood in place of Bashir. With the five-match series tied 1-1, both teams will be eager to take a lead in the third game beginning from Thursday, February 15 at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot.

Also Read: Ben Stokes reveals reason behind Mark Wood's Rajkot recall

England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (capt), Ben Foakes, Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson.