Despite monsoon storms and heightened security, jubilant cricket fans cheered on their heroes as the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup returned to a rapturous welcome that featured every aspect of a wild celebration here on Thursday.
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.
We have waited for this moment for the past 13 years. The team has made us proud by winning the World Cup,” a fan, who claimed to have been waiting since 4:30am in the morning said, referring to India’s last World Cup triumph which came back in 2011.
The side was unable to head back home immediately after the title win due to a shutdown forced by hurricane Beryl in Barbados. They were cocooned in their hotel before the BCCI secretary Jay Shah made arrangements for a special charter flight.
The Air India special charter flight AIC24WC — Air India Champions 24 World Cup — which left Barbados around 4:50am local time on Wednesday arrived in Delhi at 6am (IST) on Thursday after a 16-hour non-stop journey.
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.
Amidst the anticipated media flurry, everything transpired. After a short while, they set out to see Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his home, beginning a busy day ahead of them.
The players had already left the airport in groups of one or two after completing the necessary immigration procedures. 
Exhausted yet joyful, they smiled warmly and waved to the fans who were waiting.
The player who responded to the applause the most enthusiastically was Suryakumar, who made the incredible catch of David Miller in the championship that won the game.
Following a near-fatal vehicle tragedy, Pant made his comeback to international cricket at the just finished event. Pacer Mohammed Siraj showered the assembled audience with flying kisses.
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.
In their excitement to see their heroes in person, some fans claimed that they had been waiting outside the airport since last night.
