England leave, WI and SA stranded in India; ex-captain slams ICC for unequal treatment

former england captain Michael Vaughn Criticized what he saw as the unequal treatment of teams after withdrawing from the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, noting that some teams were still stuck in India while others had been allowed to leave.England were eliminated from the tournament on Thursday after losing to the Indian national cricket team in the semi-finals. According to Vaughan, the England team will take a chartered flight back home shortly after the defeat.However, the situation is very different for other teams. The West Indies cricket team, which was eliminated from the Super Eights last Sunday after losing five games to India, is still awaiting its return in Kolkata. On March 4, the South African national cricket team was also in trouble after losing to the New Zealand national cricket team in the semi-finals.Speaking to The“So England were eliminated on Thursday and got a charter flight home today. West Indies were eliminated last Sunday and are still in Kolkata. South Australia are in the same position. This is where the powers that be are completely wrong. All teams in this situation should be treated the same. Just because you are stronger at the ICC table, it shouldn’t count,” Warne wrote.

The travel complications are largely due to charter flights arranged by the ICC being affected by international airspace restrictions related to security concerns in the Gulf amid ongoing tensions between Israel and Iran.The West Indies camp was also visibly frustrated with the delay. Head coach Darren Sammy recently shared a brief but telling message on X that reflected the sentiment of the team. The former West Indies captain posted, “I just want to go home.”The tournament is now coming to an end with the defending champions India taking on the New Zealand national cricket team in the final in Ahmedabad on Sunday. The tournament begins on February 7 at the venues of India and Sri Lanka.