Middlesex lament "infuriating" situation as visa issues further delay Pieter Malan arrival

Malan was booked onto a flight to London for Saturday but was unable to travel without possession of a visa

Middlesex have been left frustrated by the "infuriating" situation surrounding Pieter Malan's visa, which means the county will have to wait until their final five games of the LV= Insurance County Championship for the arrival of the South African batter.

Malan's signing was initially announced in late May, with the 32-year-old replacing Peter Handscomb after it was revealed that the Australian wouldn't return to the county following his spell in Sri Lanka with Australia A.

However, he is yet to receive a visa that will eventually see him play a part in Middlesex's Division Two run-in and Royal London Cup campaign.

He was never due to be available for the red-ball defeat by Derbyshire at Chesterfield – a decision that was partly the doing of visa issues facing Mujeeb Ur Rahman, the Afghanistan leg-spinner who was due to feature in the T20 Blast but whose deal ultimately didn't materialise.

Counties can only have three overseas players each registered at once, and at the time of Malan's signing as a replacement for Handscomb, it was still hoped that Mujeeb would be able to fulfil his contract, while both Green and Jason Behrendorff were also registered for the Blast.

^{Malan was signed to replace Peter Handscomb (Alex Davidson/Getty Images)}

Malan, then, was due to debut against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge, a game that ultimately ended in a high-scoring draw, only for the "extremely frustrating" issue to rule him out.

A Middlesex statement confirmed that "countless conversations have been had with representatives from the office responsible for issuing visas and with the club's local MP".

Malan was booked onto a flight to London for Saturday but was unable to travel without possession of a visa.

The statement added: "Assurances have been given that Malan will be in receipt of his visa early this week, so his flight has been rescheduled and he will be travelling to London from South Africa within the next few days, making him available for the last five matches of Middlesex's County Championship run in, starting with the visit of Sussex to Lord's next week, and for the entirety of the Royal London Cup campaign."

Middlesex are also without Stephen Eskinazi, who has been called up to represent England Lions against South Africa, leaving the county a batter short for their clash with Worcestershire.

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