'Coming home': Team India finally flies charter after T20 World Cup victory; Rohit Sharma shares photo

Following their T20 World Cup victory over South Africa in Barbados, the Indian cricket team has finally departed for Delhi on a specially chartered flight after a three-day delay caused by a category 4 hurricane.

The Air India charter flight, named AIC24WC - "Air India Champions 24 World Cup" -- took off around 4:50 am local time and is expected to touch down in the Indian capital on Thursday at approximately 6:20 am (IST).

Captain Rohit Sharma celebrated the journey home with a photo on Instagram, featuring him with the trophy aboard the aircraft, captioned "Coming home."

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A post shared by Rohit Sharma (@rohitsharma45)

Arranged by the BCCI, the flight accommodates the entire team, support staff, players' families, board officials, and media members. The team's victory marked a thrilling end to their campaign, defeating South Africa by seven runs in the final last Saturday.

The Boeing 777, arriving from New Jersey, USA on July 2, made its way to Barbados, landing at 2 am local time, where it became the largest aircraft to land at Grantley Adams International Airport, recently reopened after the hurricane.

Originally scheduled to depart at 6 pm local time on July 2, delays ensued due to the aircraft's delayed arrival, pushing their return to India back to Wednesday at 7:45 pm (IST).

Upon their arrival, the team is set to receive honours from Prime Minister Narendra Modi shortly after touching down. After that a victory parade is all set to be hosted in Mumbai, Maharashtra at 5 pm, Jay Shah said.



The world cup-winning team will head to the scenic Marine Drive and Wankhede Stadium.