ISLAMABAD: Pakistan left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir will get his UK visa within a couple of days to play in the series against England, next month.
“Amir will travel to UK with Pakistan team as he is most likely to get his visa by this Thursday,” a source in Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) told APP on Tuesday.
Amir, who was banned from cricket for five years following the Lord’s spot-fixing scandal in 2010, along with the then captain Salman Butt and fellow pacer Mohammad Asif, had submitted a visa application to the UK high commission in Islamabad last month.
The PCB had prepared a separate case for Amir, while sending documents of other players for their visa to the UK High Commission in Islamabad.
“The PCB chief had written a letter to the UK High Commissioner, seeking special and sympathetic consideration on Amir’s visa. The board was also in touch with the England and Wales Cricket Board, who has been positive and cooperative in this matter right from the beginning,” the source added.
The source said that the PCB had only decided to apply for a visa for Amir after legal consultations. “He was not technically deported from the UK like Butt and Asif in the spot-fixing case. Moreover, he has also completed his term and already made a comeback to international cricket,” he added.
Pakistan will play four Tests, five one-day internationals and a one-off Twenty20 against England during their three-month tour with the first Test taking place at Lord’s on July 14.