Indian Cricket Team Delayed by Hurricane Beryl, Soon to Depart for India

The Indian T20 World Cup-winning cricket team’s return from Bridgetown, Barbados, has been delayed due to the impact of Hurricane Beryl. The anticipated Air India special charter flight, AIC24WC, named ‘Air India Champions 24 World Cup’, is set to repatriate the team, support staff, players’ families, and some board officials and Indian media. Rajderly Adams International Airport has resumed operations after previous suspensions due to the hurricane.

The flight, originating from New Jersey, USA, is expected to take off from Barbados at 4.30 am local time on Wednesday, reaching Delhi 16 hours later assuming no additional delays. The team will be greeted in Delhi on Thursday at 6 am IST. Post-arrival, the team is scheduled to be felicitated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, although the exact schedule remains unconfirmed.

The Indian team, led by Rohit Sharma, won the T20 World Cup title after a close seven-run victory against South Africa in the final on Saturday. However, their return was stalled as Hurricane Beryl, now a Category 4 storm with 155 mph winds, impacted the Caribbean. The storm resulted in several fatalities and significant disruptions across Grenada, Carriacou, St. Vincent, the Grenadines, and northern Venezuela.

Meanwhile, a young Indian cricket squad, led by Shubman Gill, has arrived in Harare, Zimbabwe, for an upcoming series. Assam all-rounder Riyan Parag, who temporarily misplaced his passport and phones before departure, managed to recover them and join the team. Other debutants include Abhishek Sharma and Tushar Deshpande. Three T20 World Cup reserves — Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shivam Dube — are still in Barbados and will join the rest of the squad in India later this week.

The series opener against Zimbabwe, under Sikandar Raza’s captaincy, is scheduled for July 6 in Harare, with further matches following through to July 14.