T20 World Cup: South Africa stranded ahead of World Cup Final

Attempting to break their World Cup drought, South Africa has been left stranded trying to get to Barbados.

After a commanding semi-final win South Africa has been left stranded in Trinidad. Picture: Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images

A minor plane crash involving a small aircraft carrying two passengers and one pilot, has grounded the South African team’s attempts to get to Barbados for Saturday’s World Cup final.

It was meant to be an advantage for the South Africans to play its semi-final first, ahead of England and India locking horns on Thursday in Guyana.

But the Proteas are in the midst of a frustrating daylong wait at Trinidad International Airport due to the incident which occurred on the runway of Barbados’ Grantley Adams International Airport.

Local news reports say that a small private plane crash landed on the runway after its landing gear failed to deploy.

The two passengers and pilot are reportedly uninjured.

Airport authorities were not able to immediately move the damaged plane, and as a result the entire Barbados airport was closed down and flights around the Caribbean thrown into chaos.

Tabraiz Shamsi and South Africa are aiming to end their World Cup hoodoo. Picture: Chandan Khanna / AFP

South Africa were due to depart Trinidad at 10.40am on a charter flight also transporting ICC officials and commentators and were on the tarmac ready to take off when news came through from Barbados that the airport had been indefinitely closed.

It’s understood the South Africans now won’t arrive in Barbados until the early evening at the earliest.

South African players were handling the setback well, playing with their children in the terminal and laying around with their partners and families, trying to relax two days’ out from the biggest game of their lives.

Originally published as T20 World Cup: South Africa stranded ahead of World Cup Final