Usman Khawaja left stranded in Australia due to Indian visa issues
The Australian cricket team left for India for the Border Gavaskar Trophy after the conclusion of their awards night. But Usman Khawaja had to stay back due to visa issues. While the rest have already left the country, Khawaja is still waiting for his Indian visa to be approved. As a result, he is stranded at home.
The opening batter is a very crucial member of the team. He won the inaugural Shane Warne award as the Men’s Test Player of the Year at the Australian Cricket Awards. The award has been named after the legendary spinner who passed away last year. Khawaja bagged 22 votes in his favour to beat Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith.
The prolific opener shared a ‘meme’ template on his official Instagram account and captioned it:
“Me waiting for my Indian Visa like… #stranded #dontleaveme #standard #anytimenow”
The Australian team flew out of Sydney on Tuesday, January 31. Khawaja, who is still in Australia, is likely to get his visa cleared and leave for India on Thursday, February 2. Except for Pakistan-born Khawaja, who similarly encountered visa issues back in 2011 when trying to travel to the nation, every member of the 18-man squad has been given clearance to enter India. Khawaja then resorted to social media to express his annoyance at being denied entry into the nation as an Australian, since he was not born there.
As for the series, both teams will start preparing for the all-important Border Gavaskar Trophy, which is set to begin on February 9, Thursday, and the first of the four Tests will be played at the VCA Stadium in Jamtha in Nagpur.
