MUMBAI: Pakistan’s national team players have been given visas for India, officials confirmed, and will take on the hosts on Wednesday in their first match on Indian soil since 2014.
Last Thursday, PFF was granted the NOC by its Ministry of Internal Affairs and Pakistan Sports Board, following which it applied for the visas.
“I would like to thank (AIFF general secretary) Shaji Prabhakaran and (AIFF president) Kalyan Choubey for doing so much from their end. It was thanks to them that we got the visa as quickly as we did. Normally, you get an Indian visa in person only, but we were able to get the visa in Mauritius (where the Pakistan team is playing a four-nation tournament). This allows us to travel directly to India and not have to fly back to Pakistan,” Shahid Khokhar, a member of the Pakistan Football Federation Normalisation Committee, which has been running the federation since it was suspended by FIFA in 2021, told Sportstar.
However with just a couple of days in which the Pakistan football team will have to travel and then prepare for the highly anticipated clash with the host, Khokhar wondered if it was possible for the opening tie to be rescheduled.
“I know it is very unlikely, but I humbly request the organisers to see if it is possible to reschedule our opening tie since our players will only arrive in India a short while before their opening match,” Khokhar told Sportstar.
The South Asian neighbours will kick off the South Asia Football Federation (SAFF) Championship at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday at 7:30 PM IST.
Kuwait will take on Nepal in the tournament opener earlier in the day.
All SAFF Championship 2023 matches will be available on live streaming on FanCode in India.
“As devoted sportsmen, we understand the power of sports in transcending political boundaries and fostering strong relationships between nations,” Pakistan captain Yousaf Butt told AFP.
He was speaking from Mauritius, where Pakistan has taken part in a four-nation event.
“We will put in a worthy performance despite zero sleep and jetlag – and off the field will try to win hearts to ease the tension.”
The 32-strong touring party only received their visas late Monday.
The last time Pakistan played football in India was in 2014, when they drew a two-match series, but they also faced off in the SAFF Championship in Bangladesh in 2018, with India winning 3-1.
Football is popular in both nations but dwarfed by cricket.
The eight-nation SAFF Championship kicks off Wednesday, with Pakistan in Group A alongside India, Kuwait, and Nepal, and Group B featuring Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan, and Bangladesh.
The final is scheduled for July 4.
The 14th edition of the SAFF Championship football tournament will see eight teams – India, Lebanon, Kuwait, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives, Bangladesh and Pakistan – competing for the title.
Lebanon and Kuwait are members of the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) but have joined as guest teams. Sree Kanteerava Stadium will host all matches. There will be 15 matches in total.
SAFF Championship 2023: Teams and groups
Group A: India, Kuwait, Nepal, Pakistan
Group B: Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh
India, led by Sunil Chhetri, are 101st in the FIFA rankings and are the top-ranked team in Group A. Kuwait are world No. 143 followed by world No. 174 Nepal, who were the runners-up at the last edition in 2021. Pakistan are ranked 195th.
Group B comprises the tournament’s best-ranked team Lebanon (world No. 99), Maldives (world No. 154), Bhutan (world No. 185) and Bangladesh (world No. 192).
The group stage will be played in a single round-robin format. The top two teams from each group will progress to the semi-finals, which will be played on July 1. The final will be held on July 4.
India have won the SAFF Championship eight times and are the most successful team in the tournament. The Maldives are two-time champions while Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka have won the title once each. Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, however, are not part of this year’s edition.
The Igor Stimac-managed Indian national football team recently won the Intercontinental Cup defeating Lebanon in the final. India are currently on a roll with six clean sheets in-a-row. The last time India went six games without conceding was back in 1951-52.
Where to watch SAFF Championship 2023 live
Live streaming of the SAFF Championship 2023 will be available on FanCode. Live television broadcast of the championship in India is yet to be confirmed.
FanCode’s collaboration with SAFF Championship further strengthens its commitment to providing unparalleled access to live Indian football content to its growing user base. The platform previously streamed the Hero Super Cup, Santosh Trophy, Stafford Challenge Cup, Kerala Premier League and Goa Professional league.
