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‘Mind & Heart still in Kashmir,’ says Irfan Pathan after being asked to leave the state at the earliest
Irfan Pathan and other members of the J&K support staff are expected to leave Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday.
India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and other support staffs of the Jammu and Kashmir’s cricket team were requested to leave the state at the earliest after the Indian Government’s security advisory following unrest in the valley. Pathan, who is associated with Jammu and Kashmir team as player cum mentor along with coach Milap Mewada and trainer Sudarshan VP left the state on Sunday.
“Yes, the JKCA has advised Pathan and other support staff to leave J&K. They will fly out of the Valley on Sunday. Selectors, who are not from the region, have also been asked to leave for their respective places,” JKCA chief executive officer (CEO) Syed Ashiq Hussain Bukhari told the New Indian Express.
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Reacting on the same, Irfan said his heart and mind is still in Kashmir.
This could turn out to be a blow for the J&K side ahead of the domestic season, which starts from August 17 with the Duleep Trophy followed by the domestic fifty-over tournament Vijay Hazare Trophy. The league round of Ranji Trophy is scheduled to begin on December 9.
The turmoil in the state has also forced the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association to suspend all cricketing activities and even send home more than 100 cricketers from different age groups who were camped at the Sher-i-Kashmir stadium in Srinagar.
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“We’ve already sent 101-102 Jammu players, who were camping at Sher-i-Kashmir stadium, back. The situation is tense and even we are not sure what’s going to happen, so we postponed cricketing activities and decided to wait for the right time to restart it,” Bukhari added.
JKCA had planned to organize preparatory camps which also involved match-practice by dividing the senior and U-23 cricketers to 8 different teams – three from Jammu, three from Kashmir and two from the senior team probables.
“We played a selection match on Tuesday. The juniors including U-19 and U-16 cricketers were undergoing training camp at the stadium. Apart from this, matches were going on at district headquarters. Selectors were visiting these places for talent scouting. But all these activities have now come to a sudden halt due,” India and J&K cricketer Parvez Rasool told The New Indian Express.
The turmoil in the state has also cast a doubt on the matches set to be hosted by J&K during the domestic season. However, there has been no official word from the BCCI on that matter.
