Rajkot (Gujarat): England captain Ben Stokes on Wednesday felt relieved after leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed’s visa issue was resolved in quick time after the intervention from the Indian government and the BCCI. Rehan, the spinner of Pakistani descent, had a single-entry visa upon arrival here but he was able to complete his paperwork a day before the start of the third Test against India.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference, skipper Stokes said, "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," he added.
Earlier, prior the beginning of the series, off-spinner Shoaib Bashir, who plays for Sussex in the County Championship had also faced visa issues and arrived in Hyderabad on the third day of the first Test.
"There was no thoughts about not playing him (Rehan Ahmed) this week, the great thing about youth is that they just take everything in their stride," Stokes said.
"He handled a situation that could've affected quite a lot of people in a different way, very well for such a young kid. Rehan, in the Test matches that he has played, he has done very well and he has solved everything that we have asked him," Stokes added.
Rehan Ahmed has featured in the first two Tests and picked eight wickets at an average of 36.73. He has also made valuable contributions with bat, scoring 70 runs in four innings including a crucial 28-run knock in the second innings of the first Test, played in Hyderabad.
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