The final leg of 10 Reds Snooker — to be held in Bengaluru, India — has been indefinitely postponed over Pakistan players’ visa issues in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack against Indian oppressors.
The event was scheduled to commence from the next month and is now likely to be canceled as the organizers were uncertain whether Pakistani athletes would be allowed into the hosting country.
It is worth pointing out that, according to the rules of the tournament, the event requires participation from every member nation which is why the participation from the six Pakistani athletes cannot be ignored.
A senior Asian Confederation of Billiards Sport (ACBS) clarified the situation and added:
Looking at what was happening with other sporting events in India, we informed the ACBS that visa will be an issue for Pakistani players. So, the ACBS decided to postpone the last leg of the Asian Snooker Tour indefinitely
He further said:
Six out of 24 players are from Pakistan or are Pakistani-origin. They haven’t applied for visa but we made ACBS aware of the current situation.
The senior continued that the Asian body is now “looking for venues elsewhere.”
Earlier this week, a three-member Pakistani shooting contingent was denied visas to compete in the ongoing ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in India, a development that irked the International Olympics Committee (IOC).
The IOC then sent a strongly-worded letter to India, asking for written assurances from the government for smooth entry into the country of all athletes of the participating nations, or they risk losing out on hosting international Olympics events for the foreseeable future.
