The ICC has confirmed that the Afghanistan under-19 cricket team will not be able to take part in the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Toronto because it has failed to secure the visa documentation necessary to gain access to Canada.

At the time of writing, the visas had still not been issued and it is now too late to transport the squad to Toronto in time for the event, which gets underway tomorrow.

Earlier, the event technical committee had ruled that if the team managed to arrive by 5 September it could still play the missed matches on the tournament’s reserve days. But bearing in mind all possible flight schedules, even if the visas were processed immediately it would still not be possible for the team to arrive in time and so Afghanistan is now officially withdrawn from the event.

There is still hope that the Sierra Leone team, which has also been experiencing difficulties securing visas for the event, will arrive in time to take part in the event and everything is being done in an effort to make sure that happens.

Tournament director David Thorley said: “This is a big blow to the Afghanistan team and it is a shame the event has been depleted in this way. The ICC has done everything within its power to assist in this matter but ultimately all boards are aware of their obligations in securing visas for their traveling parties to events.”