(MENAFN- AsiaNet News) India's 2024 T20 men's cricket team is facing an unexpected delay in Barbados as Hurricane Beryl has made landfall on the Caribbean island nation today, according to reports.
The Indian men's cricket team is expected to remain in their hotel due to the severe impact expected from the hurricane. "Barbados airport will shut down, and flights are being cancelled. Even the Indian team will be stuck here till the hurricane subsides, and the airport resumes. All outbound flights are being cancelled," reported IndiaToday.
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A curfew was imposed from 6 pm on June 30, with all stores and offices closing down in preparation for the storm.
The Rohit Sharma-led team's travel plans have been disrupted as Hurricane Beryl reached maximum sustained winds of 210 kmph on June 30. Reports indicated that with the Category 4 hurricane just 570 km away from the east-southeast of Barbados, the Bridgetown airport was likely to shut down in the evening.
The Indian team originally planned to fly from Bridgetown to New York and then to India via Dubai. However, they are now considering a charter flight directly to Delhi. "The team was supposed to leave from here (Bridgetown) to New York and then reach India via Dubai. But now the plan is to get a charter flight straight from here to Delhi. A meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also being considered," a source mentioned.
The Indian contingent, comprising around 70 members including the cricket team, support staff, families, and officials, is now stranded due to the hurricane.
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Indian media members in the Caribbean to cover the sports tournament are also reportedly stranded due to Hurricane Beryl.
The "extremely dangerous" Category 4 hurricane is expected to bring winds and flash flooding to the Caribbean on July 1, according to the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC).
This marks the first hurricane of the 2024 season, which runs annually from June 1 to November 30. On June 30, Beryl became the earliest Category 4 hurricane on record, surpassing Hurricane Dennis, which reached Category 4 status on July 8, 2005, as per NHC data.
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