South African cricket stars Quinton de Kock and David Miller have accused the International Cricket Council (ICC) of treating teams unequally following their early exits from the T20 World Cup.
Both West Indies and South Africa were eliminated before England, yet the English team was able to leave India without delay. De Kock and Miller expressed frustration over ICC’s handling of charter flights for the affected sides.
South Africa suffered a heavy defeat against New Zealand in the first semi-final on Wednesday, while West Indies were knocked out by India in the Super Eight stage on Sunday. England, meanwhile, lost to India in the second semi-final but departed India promptly, despite ongoing air travel disruptions caused by military conflict in the Middle East.
According to ESPNcricinfo, the ICC organised chartered flights for the teams stranded after elimination. England flew directly from Mumbai to London on Saturday, while West Indies and South Africa were scheduled to fly to Johannesburg on the same charter, with the Caribbean team continuing onward to Antigua.
The exact departure times for West Indies and South Africa remain unconfirmed, though Sunday has been suggested as a possible date.
De Kock shared a post on Instagram highlighting the perceived unfairness:
“Very funny, ICC. We still haven’t heard anything! Yet England somehow leaves before us. West Indies and the Proteas are simply left in the dark. Strange how some teams have more influence than others.”
Miller commented on the same post, pointing to the preferential treatment for England, and tagged West Indies coach Darren Sammy, who had previously shared posts about the disruption caused by India’s schedule:
“It’s very funny that England is leaving tonight on a chartered flight while West Indies and South Africa have been waiting. West Indies has waited seven days, South Africa four days. Yet we are still waiting.”
