West Indies and South Africa squads were left stranded in India due to airspace restrictions amid West Asia conflict.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday (March 11) confirmed that South Africa and West Indies squads are on course to return home after being stranded in India due to airspace restrictions amid the ongoing West Asia conflict.
The Proteas were knocked out of the T20 World Cup 2026 after losing the first semifinal clash to New Zealand by nine wickets at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on March 4.
On the other hand, West Indies’ campaign ended after losing the do-or-die Super 8 match to India in Kolkata on March 1.
“On current arrangements, the South Africa contingent will begin departing for South Africa tonight, with all members expected to have departed within the next 36 hours,” the ICC said in a statement.
“Of the West Indies contingent, nine members are already travelling to the Caribbean, while the remaining 16 are booked on flights departing India within the next 24 hours. We will provide updates on further departures as confirmed arrangements are in place.”
Despite bowing out of the tournament earlier this month, their return to home remained a challenge, with the West Asian airspace frozen due to the conflict involving the United States, Iran and Israel.
“The delay is the direct result of the ongoing crisis across the Gulf region, which has caused widespread and continuing disruption to international air travel, including airspace closures, missile warnings, re-routing constraints, as well as the cancellation and rescheduling of both commercial and charter flights at short notice,” the ICC added.
“These are conditions entirely outside the ICC’s control, and they have made each travel solution significantly more complex and time-consuming than under normal circumstances.”
In contrast, England, which lost the second semifinal to India on March 6 in Mumbai, departed for home a day layer, leading to accusations of bias against the ICC.
However, the apex body dismissed such claims, calling them ‘unhelpful’ and ‘incorrect’ and suggestions from ‘people uninformed of the situation.’
“There is no link between arrangements made in the cases of South Africa and the West Indies and those made previously for England or any other nation, which arose from separate circumstances, routing options and different travel conditions,” ICC said.
“Throughout this period, the ICC’s overriding priority has been the safety and welfare of everyone affected, including players travelling with spouses and young children. We will not move people until we are satisfied that the travel solution in place is safe, and that commitment will not change."