Indian cricket team and fans stuck in Barbados amid hurricane chaos

After the euphoria of winning the World Cup, the Indian cricket team, along with hundreds — perhaps thousands — of its fans, now find themselves stranded in Barbados as Hurricane Beryl batters the southern part of the Caribbean region.

With sustained winds of up to 120 miles per hour, the Category 3 storm is moving through the Lesser Antilles, including Barbados, where India lifted the Men’s T20 International World Cup on Saturday, causing widespread disruption. Even though the center of the storm has passed this tiny island nation, it continues to bring heavy rains, strong winds, and flooding to some areas.

The Grantley Adams International Airport, the country’s only air gateway to the outside world, closed at 7 PM on Sunday. GAOA Inc., the airport operator, announced that it will remain closed “until further notice,” advising passengers to contact their airlines directly for updates.

Amid the chaos caused by flight cancellations and transportation suspensions nationwide, tens of thousands of tourists, including cricket enthusiasts, are desperate to depart but unable to secure flights.

Among them is Jeevan Thottikkattu, a resident of Chicago, who traveled to Barbados with six friends. The final on Saturday was their first experience watching an international cricket match live in a stadium. They were ecstatic about India’s victory. However, by Sunday, the friends were frantically trying to secure return tickets.

Even if flights resume within the next day or two, ticket prices have skyrocketed.

On the popular online travel booking platform Priceline, a one-way ticket from Bridgetown to New York on July 4th is selling for upwards of $3,000, and that too with multiple stopovers.

The majority of Indian fans who came to Barbados to watch the final are from the United States and Canada. The U.S. East Coast shares the same time zone as Barbados, and the flight time from most parts of the East Coast to the country is less than five hours.

Due to work commitments, many fans have bought return tickets at higher, premium prices.

Toronto-based super-fan Deepak Jhurani, who followed the Indian team throughout the tournament from New York to Bridgetown, is one of them. He was scheduled to leave on Monday but received a notification from WestJet that his flight was canceled due to the hurricane.

Jhurani said he was unable to reach the airline via phone or online. “I have to get back to work,” he said. “So I booked a new ticket.” Jhurani, who works in a senior position at a telecom company, paid more than $950 for a one-way ticket to Toronto.

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At around 5 PM, two members of the Star Sports and International Cricket Council broadcast team that produced the coverage for the worldwide audience were at a Subway restaurant, both anxious to fly back as soon as the situation improves.

Members of the Indian cricket team are now confined to their hotel. According to media reports, the team management is closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with local authorities to ensure the safety of the players and support staff.

The team is staying at the Hilton Barbados on Needham’s Point, roughly three miles south of Kensington Oval, where they beat South Africa on Saturday. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President and former India star Roger Binny was seen having a refreshment outside the landmark “Savvy on The Bay” on Carlisle Bay. The 1983 World Cup winner chatted with Indian fans similarly stuck on the island and graciously posed for photographs.

Binny said the team would fly directly to Delhi once the airport resumes operations.

On the other hand, the South African team, unlucky to lose after being in a winning position on Saturday, had more luck on Sunday. The team members, their partners, and support staff managed to leave the country on Sunday afternoon.

As they waited outside the airport’s departure gate around noon on Sunday, members of the Proteas squad looked tired, with disappointment clearly written on their faces — having lost their first-ever championship at the final hurdle. Eager to leave before the storm arrived, they were not in any mood to entertain selfie requests from fans.

Like the South African team, many fans who had planned to leave the day after the match also found a way out.

Rahul Vemuri, who traveled to Barbados from Ashburn, VA, a suburb of Washington, DC, along with his dad, was among those who beat the storm. “We got super lucky that the game didn’t go to the reserve day as there’s only one flight a week from Barbados to Dulles International Airport in Washington on Sunday,” he told DesiMax.

“We heard about the incoming Hurricane Beryl and were very worried about our travel plans. Fortunately, our flight departed just before the Barbados airport closed due to the hurricane.”

Vemuri said many of his friends were left stranded on the island, and, with hotels charging exorbitant rates, they had no choice but to pay to extend their stays. “Since most fans are unfamiliar with hurricane preparedness, they had to rely on pre-packaged food for meals and cope with limited water supplies,” he said. “We are hoping and praying for everyone’s safety and wish for a quick and safe return home for all.”