On Wednesday afternoon, shortly after a second group of players and support staff had left from Sydney, Khawaja posted on social media: “Me waiting for my Indian Visa like… #stranded #dontleaveme #standard #anytimenow.” ESPNcricinfo understands that a number of visas were late being returned, although it’s unclear if any other travel plans have had to be changed.
It’s understood that Khawaja is now scheduled to fly out to Bengaluru on Thursday.
Khawaja, who was born in Pakistan and is an Australian citizen, has toured India numerous times – including for the 2013 and 2017 Test visits – but has had difficulty getting a visa previously too.
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Khawaja shapes as a pivotal member of Australia’s top order even though he has yet to play a Test in India. Since his recall against England in early 2022, he has scored 1275 runs at 79.68 including five centuries
Australia are set to spend four days training in Bengaluru before relocating to Nagpur for the first Test, which begins on February 9.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo