India’s T20 World Cup-winning cricketers wore a special ‘champions’ jersey to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday. The jersey, in orange and blue with ‘Champions’ written at the centre, was specially designed for Team India’s meeting with PM Modi. It was the same jersey that the Indian team wore during the World Cup in the USA and Caribbean islands, with the only differences being the ‘champions’ on their chest and an extra star on top of the BCCI logo, denoting India’s two T20 World Cup trophies.
Previously, India’s T20I jersey had only one star for their victory in the inaugural edition in 2007. They added to that by winning their title after 17 years under Rohit Sharma’s leadership.
India wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson, who did not get to play a match in the tournament but was part of the 15-member team, shared the first glimpse of the special jersey on his social media handle.
The players were seen leaving the ITC Maurya Hotel wearing the same jersey to meet PM Modi.
Notably, only the cricketers, the coaches and the top BCCI officials went to meet the PM while the family members waited at the hotel.
The Rohit Sharma-led side landed in New Delhi in the early hours of Thursday after being stuck in the Caribbean islands ever since beating South Africa by seven runs in the final on June 29 (Saturday) in Barbados. The Indian players could not leave Barbados due to Hurricane Beryl, which forced a two-day shutdown of the island.
As soon as the airport became operational, the BCCI sprang into action to arrange for a special charter flight to bring home the 70-odd Indian contingent comprising players, coaches, their families, board officials and covering sports journalists.
Hundreds of supporters, holding placards congratulating their favourites and waving the national flag, braved the inclement weather to wait outside the airport for the victorious side, which defeated South Africa by seven runs in the final in Bridgetown on Saturday last week.
Heavy security was deployed to keep the crowd in check at the Indira Gandhi International airport but that did little to dampen the spirits as fans cheered enthusiastically holding up posters of star batter Virat Kohli, skipper Rohit Sharma and outgoing head coach Rahul Dravid.
Two buses were stationed outside the T3 Terminal to ferry the players to ITC Maurya Sheraton, where they were greeted by dhol and traditional Bhangra dancers.
Most of them, including skipper Rohit Sharma, all-rounder Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav and Rishabh Pant, shook a leg with the assembled dancers, giving them a memory of a lifetime.
Even the on-duty security personnel had smiles on their faces as the players let their hair down after the long journey, shook hands with everyone who wanted to and moved into their rooms after cutting a cake that was kept ready for them.
All of this unfolded amid expected media frenzy. A brief while later, they left to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence, continuing a hectic schedule that awaits them through the day.Tired but excited, they acknowledged the waiting fans by waving at them and flashing warm smiles.
Suryakumar, who took the sensational match-winning catch of David Miller in the final, was the most animated in responding to the cheering.
Pant, who returned to international cricket at the just-concluded event after a life-threatening car accident, saluted the gathered crowd, while pacer Mohammed Siraj blew flying kisses in their direction.
Rohit and Player of the Final Kohli, both of whom retired from T20Is at the end of India’s campaign, were among the last to come out of the VIP exit.
Rohit raised the coveted trophy for the fans to catch a glimpse before boarding the bus. Kohli, on his part, gave a thumbs up to acknowledge the support.
(With PTI inputs)
