South African team stranded in Barbados due to runaway closure ahead of T20 World Cup 2024 final

Cricket South Africa. (Photo Source: ICC)

The South African cricket team’s journey to the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 final has been disrupted due to a runway closure at Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados. This incident caused a nearly six-hour delay for the team, along with ICC officials, commentators, and match officials who were en route to the final venue.

The T20 World Cup 2024, jointly hosted by the USA and the West Indies, has been affected by logistical challenges and tight schedules throughout the tournament. South Africa’s path to the final has been remarkable, maintaining an unbeaten streak through the group stages and Super Eight phase.

Their previous victory against Afghanistan in the first semi-final secured their spot in the summit clash, marking their first-ever appearance in a men’s World Cup final.

The delay was caused by a landing failure of a small private aircraft at the Barbados airport, leading to its closure for inspections by the Civil Aviation Authority and the Barbados Police Service.

“It appeared that the landing gear of the private aircraft did not deploy, but it is currently on the runway at GAIA [Grantley Adams International Airport] safely. She confirmed that all three individuals on board, two passengers and a pilot, were unharmed,” Sharleen Brown, Corporate Communication Specialist with GAIA, said in a statement.

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South Africa ran through Afghanistan line-up in SF-1

The Proteas side along with other passengers, were informed of the runway closure just moments before their scheduled departure from Trinidad. The rescheduled departure time was tentatively set for 4:30 PM (2:30 AM IST), resulting in a nearly six-hour delay. The semi-final match between South Africa and Afghanistan saw the Proteas’ dominance. Afghanistan, who had a dream run in the tournament, were bundled out for a mere 56 runs.

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South Africa’s bowling attack, led by Marco Jansen and Tabraiz Shamsi with three wickets each, proved too strong for the Afghan batters. In response, Aiden Markram & Co. comfortably chased down the target, losing only one wicket, with Reeza Hendricks (29*) and Markram (23*) steering the team to victory.

The Markram-led side will square off against the winners of the semi-final 2 match between England and India in the finals of the competition at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on June 29.