WHEN WILL INDIAN CRICKET TEAM, BCCI OFFICIALS RETURN TO INDIA? BARBADOS PM SAYS AIRPORT LIKELY TO OPEN IN NEXT 6-12 HOURS

The T20 World Cup-winning Indian cricket team is scheduled to return home on a charter flight Tuesday evening. This comes after Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced that the airport is expected to become operational within the “next six to 12 hours,” following a shutdown caused by a Category 4 hurricane.

Details of Their Stranded Situation

The squad, led by Rohit Sharma, along with their support staff, BCCI officials, and players’ families, have been stranded for the past two days due to Hurricane Beryl. The team clinched the title on Saturday, defeating South Africa by seven runs in the final.

According to sources, the team will depart Bridgetown at 6 PM (local time) and arrive in Delhi on Wednesday at 7:45 PM (IST). They will be honored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, though the exact schedule for the event has yet to be finalized.

Prime Minister Mottley had earlier provided an update on the situation.

Prime Minister Mottley, who has been overseeing relief operations, stated that she has been in contact with airport personnel, who are currently conducting final checks. She emphasised the urgency of resuming normal operations as soon as possible.

Mottley mentioned that there were several people scheduled to depart either late last night, today, or tomorrow morning. She emphasized the importance of accommodating these travelers and anticipated that the airport would reopen within the next six to 12 hours.

Barbados and nearby islands faced life-threatening winds and storms on Monday, prompting the country, which has a population of nearly 300,000, to enforce a lockdown since Sunday evening.

Efforts to Ensure Safety

She emphasized that efforts had been focused on ensuring the safety of everyone in Barbados, including Barbadians and all visitors who came for the Cricket World Cup, expressing gratitude that the storm did not make landfall.

Mottley mentioned that the hurricane was located 80 miles south of Barbados, which helped limit the damage onshore. However, she noted significant damage to coastal infrastructure and assets.

While acknowledging that the situation could have been more severe, Mottley emphasized the importance of focusing on recovery and cleanup efforts. She pointed out the limited departure window from Bridgetown due to another hurricane expected on Wednesday. Despite the ongoing lockdown, Mottley expressed optimism that the Indian team, which has remained at their hotel since securing the trophy, will remain upbeat after ending an 11-year title drought.

Mottley expressed confidence that despite the hurricane’s impact, the Indian team would be in high spirits after their victory on Saturday. She humorously remarked that they might feel like they’re “floating on air” for a while.

(With PTI inputs)

2024-07-02T13:38:29Z dg43tfdfdgfd