Modi meets triumphant T20 stars

New Delhi: The T20 World Cup-winning Indian team met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence on Thursday, shortly after landing in the national capital after a non-stop 16-hour flight from Barbados. The players reached 7, Lok Kalyan Marg at around 11 am on the wet morning where they were hosted by the PM for breakfast. Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Indian cricket team in New Delhi on Thursday. (AFP)

Aboard Air India’s Boeing 777-200LR with a special call sign AIC24WC, the Rohit Sharma-led side emerged from the IGI Airport at around 6am to a huge gathering of fans and a heavy security arrangement.

Having broken India’s 11-year jinx for an ICC trophy, there were no signs of jet-leg on Rohit’s face when he cut the day’s first cake with BCCI president Roger Binny and secretary Jay Shah at the airport. The team then checked into ITC Maurya where another cake — one in the shape of the winning trophy — was cut by Rohit and Virat Kohli. The two stalwarts of India’s white-ball cricket announced their retirement from the shortest format moments after India’s thrilling win over South Africa in the final. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja called time on his T20 career a day later.

From the hotel, the team along with BCCI President Roger Binny and Secretary Jay Shah were escorted to the Prime Minister’s residence. They donned a special jersey with ‘Champions’ emblazoned across it in bold letters.

In a 57-second clip posted on Modi’s YouTube channel, the players, led by Rohit with the trophy, can be seen gleefully entering the PM’s house. Modi, flanked by Rohit on his right and outgoing coach Rahul Dravid to his left, posed for a picture with the entire squad.

Yuzvendra Chahal, Bumrah, Kohli, Rohit, Dravid, Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Rishabh Pant stood in the front row while Shivam Dube, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya, Jay Shah, Roger Binny, Suryakumar Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Arshdeep Singh, and Sanju Samson stood in the back.

The players then sat with Modi for a seemingly light-hearted conversation where Rohit, Dravid, Pandya, Kohli, and Player of the Tournament Bumrah took turns to speak to the PM.

“It was an honour to be invited to our honourable Prime Minister’s residence this morning. Thank you so much for your warmth and hospitality sir @narendramodi,” Bumrah wrote on X.

“Dear @narendramodi sir, thank you so much for your very kind words and your support and encouragement always. It has been a privilege to be a part of this team which has brought the cup home. We are deeply touched & overwhelmed with the happiness it has bought the entire nation,” Kohli tweeted.

The team departed for Mumbai on a Vistara flight at 3:42pm where more celebrations awaited, including an open-top bus ride to the Wankhede Stadium and a felicitation ceremony at the iconic stadium.

Later, the PM’s official X handle posted pictures with the winning team. “An excellent meeting with our Champions! Hosted the World Cup winning team at 7, LKM and had a memorable conversation on their experiences through the tournament,” the post read.

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