GUWAHATI: The return of the Indian cricket team from Barbados has been further delayed due to the late arrival of their charter flight from New Jersey.
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After securing the T20 World Cup 2024 title by defeating South Africa in the final on Saturday, Rohit Sharma and his team were scheduled to depart for India on Sunday. However, their plans were disrupted by a hurricane , which led to the closure of Barbados' airport and the cancellation of all flights.
As of Wednesday morning (India time), reports indicated additional delays in the team's departure from Barbados. The players are now expected to arrive in Delhi on Thursday morning, i.e. July 4. BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla revealed on Tuesday that the team was initially set to fly out on Wednesday evening (local time), having been stranded in Barbados for three days due to the hurricane.
Thank God team India is flying back from Barbados this evening to Delhi. Will be reaching tomorrow evening . They were stuck for three days there because of massive hurricane . (1/2)
— Rajeev Shukla (@ShuklaRajiv) July 2, 2024
"Thank God team India is flying back from Barbados this evening to Delhi. Will be reaching tomorrow evening. They were stuck for three days there because of massive hurricane. @BCCI has made all arrangements for safe flight of players back home. BCCI secretary @JayShah himself is monitoring the whole situation," he posted on X on Wednesday.
The delay was worsened reportedly by the late arrival of the special charter flight, named AIC24WC -- Air India Champions 24 World Cup -- which is tasked with bringing back the Indian squad, its support staff, players' families, and some board officials and Indian media. The flight, which departed from New Jersey on July 2, is anticipated to land in Barbados around 2 AM local time.
The revised schedule now has the flight set to depart from Barbados at 4:30 AM (local time). With a 16-hour flight time, the team is expected to land in Delhi on Thursday at 6 AM (IST), provided there are no further delays. The Grantley Adams International Airport resumed operations on Tuesday. Initially, the Indian team was scheduled to leave Barbados at 6 PM local time on July 2 and arrive in Delhi at 7:45 PM (IST) on Wednesday.
