Team India travelling (Source : Twitter )
The Indian cricket team, fresh from their T20 World Cup 2024 triumph, is finally set to fly out of Barbados after facing unexpected delays due to Hurricane Beryl. The team’s journey home, initially hindered by the category 4 hurricane, is now back on track, marking the beginning of their celebratory return to India. The flight to take the Men in Blue has finally arrived in Barbados.
Hurricane Beryl, a powerful Category 4 storm, hit the island on Sunday evening, forcing a complete shutdown of the country and stranding the Indian contingent for two days.
According to reporter Abhishek Tripathi from Dainik Jagran, “Air India’s Boeing 777 has landed in Barbados. The employee working here said that this is the first time I have seen such a big plane landing here. The Indian team will leave for India in this plane,” the reporter posted on ‘X’.
एयर इंडिया का बोइंग 777 बारबाडोस में लैंड कर चुका है। यहां काम करने वाली कर्मचारी ने कहा कि मैंने पहली बार यहां पर इतना बड़ा विमान लैंड करते देखा है। इसी से भारतीय टीम भारत रवाना होगी। pic.twitter.com/01wfMFJoUA
— Abhishek Tripathi / अभिषेक त्रिपाठी (@abhishereporter) July 3, 2024
The Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley, played a crucial role in facilitating the team’s departure. She announced that the airport was expected to become operational within six to 12 hours, effectively ending the hurricane-induced shutdown.
Also read: Jay Shah offers stranded Indian media in Hurricane-hit Barbados to fly home with Team India
The Indian contingent, comprising the T20 World Cup-winning squad, support staff, BCCI officials, and players’ families, is expected to land in Delhi on Wednesday at 7:45 pm IST. Their arrival will mark the beginning of grand celebrations across the nation, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi planning to felicitate the team, though the exact schedule is yet to be finalized.
Interestingly, the hurricane has also affected the plans of five players, Rinku Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shivam Dube, Khaleel Ahmed, and Sanju Samson, who were originally slated to travel to Zimbabwe for an upcoming five-match T20I series. Now, Samson, Dube, and Jaiswal will first return to India with the World Cup squad before departing for Harare.