On their train journey from London to Leeds, the venue for the first Test of the five-match series, Indian cricket team players got nostalgic. They shared childhood stories about travelling by train in India.In a two-minute video posted by the BCCI on X, Team India players were seen leaving their team hotel in London with coffee cups in hand. They acknowledged selfie requests from fans, with a few cheeky digs and stories along the way.“Ball theek karo halka sa, ek haath se. Aa gaya shot aa gaya” (Fix your hair a little with one hand. Yes, we got the shot), someone quipped behind the camera to all-rounder Washington Sundar.Wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel jogged down memory lane and recalled one of his childhood train journeys.“When I was very young, my father was posted in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. There were a lot of mountains and beautiful, beautiful scenes during the journey. I used to get very excited. He always used to take the window seat so that I could sit and enjoy the scenery,” reminisced Jurel.Sundar’s travel partner Sai Sudharsan revealed how, in his younger days, he only used to travel by train for cricket camps.“When I was young, I always used to take a train. We had U-12 and U-14 camps in Chepauk,” he said.Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel was seen clicking photos of KL Rahul, who was sitting at a window seat on the train.
Meanwhile, senior pro Shardul Thakur, who has made a comeback into the side, shared his experience of travelling in Mumbai’s local trains.“There’s a direct train from my house. I walk for a few minutes, take a local train, go there, practise, and come back on the local train. That’s my memory of trains,” he said.“Of course, right now I’m enjoying a nice, comfortable window seat. But back in Mumbai, it’s not the same. You have to go through that hustle. This is definitely easy. So, yes, I’m at peace with this right now,” said Thakur.The video ended with wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav welcoming everyone to the venue. He said, “Welcome to Leeds.”