India’s T20 World Cup champions received a warm welcome upon their return home on Thursday, greeted by enthusiastic fans in New Delhi before Captain Rohit Sharma led them to a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Excited crowds cheered “India, India” as the team landed at Delhi airport from the Caribbean, where they had faced delays due to Hurricane Beryl.
The players acknowledged the crowds, enjoying drum beats and live music at their hotel before heading to Modi’s residence.
Rohit and his team donned Indian jerseys adorned with “Champions,” with televised images capturing their meeting with the Prime Minister.
Modi posed for photos with the team before engaging in discussions with the players.
Later, the team headed to Mumbai for an open-top bus victory parade in the heart of the financial capital, concluding at Wankhede Stadium.
Earlier in the day, fans greeted the players with whistles and cheers as they emerged from the arrivals area wearing gold medals around their necks, some gesturing thumbs-up to the supporters.
“This moment is surreal, witnessing my team with the World Cup,” emotional fan Rohit Khanna told AFP. “I witnessed the 2011 triumph, but this is unforgettable.”
Despite monsoon rains, crowds gathered outside New Delhi’s airport well before dawn, eager to catch a glimpse of their idols who had clinched victory against South Africa in a thrilling final in Barbados last Saturday.
Vice-captain Hardik Pandya was the first to appear, sporting a Caribbean hat, while cheers erupted when Captain Rohit emerged holding the glittering trophy high above his head.
Star batsman Virat Kohli, a Delhi native, received some of the loudest cheers as he waved to hundreds of fans.
“It’s a dream come true for me to see India return home with a World Cup,” said a fan with a Kohli tattoo on his chest.
India’s victory in last weekend’s final ended an 11-year drought for global cricket trophies, following their 2013 Champions Trophy win. Their last World Cup victory was in the 2011 50-over edition under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
A fan held up a poster of coach Rahul Dravid with the message “Thank you, Mr Dependable.”
The final marked Dravid’s last match in charge, with the 51-year-old coach lifted into the air by the team during post-match celebrations.
Following the final, Rohit, Kohli, and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja announced their retirement from T20 international cricket.
According to the plane tracking website Flightradar24, the special Air India charter carrying the team was the “most tracked flight for much of the last 15 hours,” as excited fans followed their journey back from the Caribbean.
