Afghanistan players Qais Ahmed, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Noor Ahmed have withdrawn from this year's Caribbean Premier League.
Qais was going to join the Guyana Amazon Warriors. Gurbaz was part of the Barbados Tridents squad. Noor had been recruited by the St Lucia Zouks. According to Cricbuzz, they don't have the transit visas needed to travel from London to the Caribbean.
“It is a real shame that these players couldn't make it to the tournament, but this year more than ever it has been very difficult to secure travel,” said a CPL spokesperson.
“The borders into Trinidad and Tobago are closed and the CPL was given special permission to fly in charter planes. The dates for these were fixed and it just wasn't possible to get them here on time.”
The 19-year-old Qais was going to play for Gloucestershire in the T20 Blast in the United Kingdom this year. The tournament, though, has been postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic. He had represented the Hobart Hurricanes in Australia's Big Bash League earlier this year.
Other Afghanistan Players in the 2020 CPL
- Rashid Khan (Barbados Tridents)
- Mohammad Nabi (St Lucia Zouks)
- Najibullah Zadran (St Lucia Zouks)
- Naveen-Ul-Haq (Guyana Amazon Warriors)
CPL Background
The 2020 CPL will start on 18 August and end on 10 September. The tournament will be played entirely in Trinidad and Tobago, as a preventative measure against the spread of the virus. The Brian Lara Stadium and Queen's Park Oval are the venues for the competition.
The Trinbago Knight Riders have won the CPL three times. The Barbados Tridents are the reigning champions, after beating the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the 2019 final. Guyana have played five CPL finals, but not won one.
Opening batsman Chris Gayle has the most runs in the history of the CPL, but will not play in the 2020 edition.
Seamer Dwayne Bravo is the leading wicket-taker in the CPL. He used to captain the Knight Riders, but has since been succeeded by all-rounder Kieron Pollard.
The St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, meanwhile, have hired former West Indies fast bowler Courtney Walsh and New Zealand Mark O'Donnell as coaches for this year's tournament.
