Sports journalists in Pakistan are urging Pakistani media to boycott the World Cup 2023 amid reports that ICC will give them an opportunity to ask questions through WhatsApp, instead of expediting the visa issuance process for Pakistani journalists.
The reaction came after Indian media reported that the International Cricket Council (ICC) has come up with a solution to allow Pakistani journalists to participate in the media conferences through WhatsApp as they wait for India to give them the green light for the World Cup coverage.
Abdul Ghaffar, an sport Journalist wrote on social media platform X (formerly Twitter),
“ICC instead of asking Pakistan Journo to send questions via Whatsapp must make sure well in advance that Pakistan Media gets visa on time and travelled,” he wrote on X.
“In addition to taking questions from the media present, the Pakistan representative at the media conference will also answer a few questions sent in by members of the Pakistan media who are still to travel for the event,” New Indian Express quoted ICC as saying.
A day earlier, Reuters reported that the organisers of the 50-overs World Cup in India are working to secure visas for fans and media from Pakistan, the governing ICC said after complaints from the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Visas for the Pakistan team were granted barely 48 hours before they left for what is their first tour of India since the T20 World Cup in 2016.
Around 60 Pakistani journalists are expected to make the trip for the World Cup. Pakistan had plenty of local support for their World Cup opener against Netherlands in Hyderabad on Friday but no member of their media contingent or fan was present, ESPNcricinfo reported.
The PCB is hoping the visas will come through before the game between India and Pakistan in Ahmedabad on October 14.
Read: In letter to ICC, PCB raises visa delays for Pakistan team
“We have been reminding ICC about their obligations and members’ agreement on issuing visas for fans and journalists for the last three years and continue to raise concerns with all relevant authorities,” a PCB spokesperson said.
PCB is disappointed to see that Pakistani journalists and fans are facing uncertainty about obtaining an Indian visa to cover Pakistan’s opening game in the ICC World Cup, he added.
Earlier, sports journalist Ubaid Awan announced giving up his media accreditation given by the ICC, saying that he had informed the body of his decision due to delays in the issuance of a visa.
“They keep telling us to wait. Pakistan’s matches have begun. We are not being granted visas to visit India to cover the tournament. The biggest match of the World Cup is the Pakistan-India game, and I do not think we would be able to reach there on time,” he added.
