Indian men’s cricket team won a thrilling final by seven runs in Barbados on Saturday to clinch their first global tournament since the 2013 Champions Trophy. But it unclear when the Indian team would arrive home, with Indian media on Monday reporting they were stuck in Barbados, delayed by Hurricane Beryl.
The “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm Hurricane Beryl barrelled across the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday night toward the Caribbean’s Windward Islands, where it is expected to bring life-threatening winds and flash flooding on Monday, the US National Hurricane Center said.
The first hurricane of the 2024 season was located about 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Barbados on Sunday night, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 kph), the NHC said in an advisory.
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“Beryl is expected to remain an extremely dangerous major hurricane as its core moves through the Windward Islands into the eastern Caribbean,” the NHC said in its latest advisory.
The airport has been closed and curfew has been imposed in the city due to the hurricane.
Currently, the Indian team is staying at the Hilton Hotel. Speaking to the reporters, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah said that they are ‘stuck’ in Barbados and will think about the felicitation once the travel plans are clear.
“Like you, we are also stuck here. After the travel plans are clear, we will think about the felicitation,” Shah was quoted by ESPNcricinfo as saying.
Jay Shah, secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, announced around 25 people in the team, coaching and support staff would share nearly $15 million in prize money, a reward for their “talent, determination, and sportsmanship”.
The bonus is in addition to a record prize pool of $11.25 million for the tournament, of which India will receive $2.45 million.
The cricket-obsessed country erupted in midnight celebrations as India won, with fans in blue India shirts taking to the streets across cities including the capital New Delhi.