ICC Books Commercial Tickets For West Indies, South Africa After Charter Flight Cancellation: Sources
The ICC on Tuesday booked separate commercial flights for the stranded West Indies and South Africa teams after their charter flight scheduled to take off from Kolkata " was cancelled due to logistical issues".
The wait is finally over, as the International Cricket Council (ICC) has booked separate commercial flights for the stranded West Indies and South Africa teams to ensure a safe journey home, sources told NDTV. This move comes after the charter flight, originally scheduled to take off from Kolkata, was canceled due to "logistical issues." Speaking to NDTV, an official confirmed that commercial bookings were made to guarantee the safe passage of the players amid the ongoing conflict involving the United States and Iran.
The source also revealed that the players will begin departing India in batches rather than as a single group.
"All the players are now booked on commercial flights out... they have started leaving in batches," the official told NDTV.
The two teams that played their final T20 World Cup games in Kolkata (West Indies in Super 8s on March 1 and South Africa on March 4 in semi-final) have not been able to fly out due to the disruption that has been caused by International airspace restrictions across parts of West Asia following American and Israeli strikes on Iran.
The situation has forced multiple airlines to avoid routes through the Gulf region. ICC's airline partner is Emirates and they are unable to operate due to shutdown of Dubai airspace.
The restrictions severely complicated outbound travel from India towards the Caribbean and Africa, forcing cricket authorities to explore alternative routes and charter arrangements.
Earlier, in a communication conveyed on Tuesday evening, both teams were scheduled to leave Kolkata on a shared charter flight to Johannesburg on Tuesday afternoon.
From there, the West Indies contingent was to continue onward to Antigua, while the South Africans were expected to disperse for their respective commitments.
The West Indies squad has been stranded in Kolkata since March 1 after being knocked out of the T20 World Cup by India, who defeated them by five wickets in their Super Eight match at Eden Gardens on March 1.
South Africa's campaign had ended a few days later when they lost the first semifinal to eventual runners-up New Zealand at the same venue on March 4, leaving them caught in the same boat.
(With PTI Inputs)
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