Indian captain Rohit Sharma, vice-captain Hardik Pandya, and star batter Suryakumar yadav danced after reaching the ITC Maaurya Hotel in New Delhi on Thursday. After a five-day long wait, the World Champion Indian Cricketers finally arrived to a heroic welcome.
All the crowd shouted “India, India” after they landed in New Delhi, having been delayed for days. Uncountable number of whistles and cheers greeted the players as they walked out from the arrival with gold medals around their necks, with some of the players giving a thumbs-up to their fans.
Despite the monsoon rain, crow gathered outside New Delhi’s airport long before the break of dawn, waiting to see their idols.
Vice-captain Hardik Pandya came out first, then came out captain Rohit Sharma carrying the shiny trophy high in the air, which the crowd saw and went crazy for.
Star batter Virat Kohli was then given some of the loudest cheers as he waved to hundreds of fans.
The team eventually left the airport in buses, safeguarded by a long escort of police vehicles with ongoing sirens. The destination was ITC Maurya Hotel, where special arrangements had been made to welcome them.
A group of dancers greeted them with dhols as Rohit, Surya and Hardik did bhangra to express their happiness. Kohli, did not show his dance moves, but was seen giggling with a broad smile.
Virat Kohli smiling and Hardik Pandya dancing when they reach India with the Trophy.🥹
– THIS IS BEAUTIFUL. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/1OONnF3zzJ
— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) July 4, 2024
Last weekend’s win ended an 11-year drought for Indian team for a global cricket trophy. Their last victory was at home in 2011 50-over edition, when the captain was MS Dhoni.
Amidst the crows, one fan was seen holding up a poster for coach Rahul Dravid. “Thank you, Mr Dependable”, it said.
This final match of the World Cup marked the last match in charge for Dravid, 51, who was bounced in the air by the team following the World Cup victory.
Rohit, Kohli and Jadeja all announced their retirement from T20 international cricket after this victory.
