Team India have reached Australia for the T20 World Cup 2022. The Men in Blue also played an unofficial warm-up game against Western Australia which they won comfortably. While the main squad has already reached the Land Down Under, the standby players are expected to leave for Australia in a couple of days. India’s net bowlers for the tournament, Umran Malik and Kuldeep Sen were also expected to leave with them but it seems they won’t be travelling to the country any sooner.
It’s reported that visa issues have delayed both players’ departure to Australia and there is no clarity on when they will be able to fly again. Notably, Malik and Sen were expected to assist the players in their preparation for the showpiece event. Both pacers had a decent outing in this year’s IPL. While Malik garnered significant attention for his ability to bowl at 150+ kph, Sen was also pretty quick.
However, these two won’t be able to fly to Australia now with visa issues. There is no clarity on when Malik will be able to fly to Australia or if will he even. Malik’s duration of participation in SMAT is also not clear.
Malik, 22, will now feature in the J&K squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) in Mohali, according to reports. The bowler has got an exemption from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to join the J&K squad for SMAT. The right-arm quick has now joined the team in Mohali for the Elite Group C match against Meghalaya. Meanwhile, Kuldeep Sen’s participation in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is not certain.
Notably, Malik, Sen, and Mohammed Siraj were scheduled to fly with the India squad to their training base in Perth on October 6. However, Siraj got picked for the ODI series against South Africa while Malik and Sen stayed back for visa reasons.