Credit: X
The Indian cricket team is all set to reach its homeland on early Thursday, July 4, from Barbados. Men in Blue, who defeated South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 final to lift the ICC silverware after a decade-long wait, were stranded in Barbados due to Hurricane Beryl. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) arranged a charted flight for the team and journalists to bring them home. Rohit Sharma-led side will land in the national capital, New Delhi on early Thursday, and have a long day planned ahead of them.
The 2024 World Cup winners will have breakfast with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, before flying to Mumbai for further celebrations. In Mumbai, the team will receive a grand welcome and will take part in an open bus parade near the Wankhede Stadium from Nariman Point to Marine Drive. The parade is set to take place from 5 pm onwards, and even former T20I captain Rohit Sharma also sent an open invitation to fans for the same.
Sharma tweeted on X, “We want to enjoy this special moment with all of you. So let’s celebrate this win with a victory parade at Marine Drive & Wankhede on July 4th from 5:00 pm onwards. It’s coming home.” Post the parade, the team will head to Wankhede Stadium, for a small ceremony, hosted by the BCCI. At the stadium, BCCI secretary Jai Shah would present the cash reward to the side, he announced after India’s win.
It is to be noted that the Indian team couldn’t leave Barbados after the final due to Hurricane Beryl, which later developed into a category 5 storm. The BCCI sent a charted flight, an Air India Boeing 777, to take the cricketers, staff, as well as journalists back home.
