Zimbabwe players celebrate after the wicket of South Africa captain Aiden Markram during the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 cricket match between Zimbabwe and South Africa at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. (PTI photo) TimesofIndia.com in New Delhi: Zimbabwe were already gearing up for Sunday’s match against South Africa in New Delhi after their T20 World Cup semi-final run. Walking through their steps on a hot Saturday afternoon the day before, their attention shifted to their phones and news channels in the evening.Airspace in the global trade hub of Dubai has been affected following US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran and their counter-attack on US military installations around the Persian Gulf. Zimbabwe were due to fly through the region on their way home after a positive tournament.“You still believe you’re focused on the game. At the end of the day it’s in the back of everyone’s mind. You know you’re going home, when you’re coming home, how you’re coming home, the conversations are in groups. Travel plans are not clear, from then on, focus on the game,” Zimbabwe coach Justin Simmons said after their five-wicket loss to South Africa.As a result, Zimbabwe and their traveling fans are forced to seek alternative routes. The team was supposed to leave in three batches, Simmons revealed, but he is unclear about the current situation. One of the players in the team, Graeme Cremer, lives in Dubai. The team and their fans are considering flying to Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, before embarking on further journeys.Meanwhile, South Africa have more days left in India. He will now fly to Kolkata for the semi-final against New Zealand. However, the reality of the world outside was not lost on the Proteas contingent.“Obviously it comes up in every conversation, so you can’t wish it away because it’s there. We’ve just got to try and get our yorkers on the nail. So while it’s (in) the conversation, we’ve just managed to push it aside,” South Africa coach Shukri Conrad said after they maintained their unbeaten run.“And of course our manager, along with the ICC, we strongly believe that all the right decisions will be made. All our attention is focused on Kolkata and the game in New Zealand on Wednesday,” he added.On Saturday, the Dubai-based ICC issued a statement clarifying that it was monitoring the situation. “The International Cricket Council (ICC) is closely monitoring the evolving situation in the Middle East and has activated comprehensive contingency plans to ensure the travel, logistics and welfare of all stakeholders associated with the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup T20 currently underway in India and Sri Lanka,” it said in a statement.“While the Middle East crisis does not have a direct impact on the running of the tournament, the ICC recognizes that a significant number of staff – including players, team management, match officials, broadcast teams and event staff – rely on Gulf airports, particularly Dubai (DXB), as key transit points for onward journeys to their home countries following the conclusion of their event commitments,” he continued.Since Sunday, Indian airlines have canceled 350 international flights due to disruptions caused by the escalating conflict in the Persian Gulf region.“Due to airspace restrictions resulting from geopolitical developments in the Middle East, a total of 350 flights operated by domestic Indian carriers have been canceled on 1/3/2026,” the Ministry of Civil Aviation said at 1634 hours on Sunday in a post on X.
