Did a Special Vande Bharat Train Bring PBKS & DC Teams to New Delhi?

New Delhi, May 9 (NationPress) A unique Vande Bharat train transporting players from both Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Delhi Capitals (DC), along with their support staff, match officials, commentators, broadcast crew, operational staff, and other essential personnel linked to the abandoned IPL 2025 match in Dharamshala, has successfully arrived in New Delhi from Jalandhar.

The DC team bus, accompanied by other buses, was prepared near Safdarjung Railway Station to transport players and various key personnel to their accommodations. Upon exiting the train, all individuals boarded their designated buses and proceeded to their respective hotels in New Delhi.

Notable figures such as KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Ricky Ponting, Nehal Wadhera, Marco Jansen, Tristan Stubbs, Heman Badani, Jake Fraser McGurk, Yuzi Chahal, Priyansh Arya, Axar Patel, Shashank Singh, Brad Haddin, Patrick Farhat, alongside the entire DC and PBKS teams, commentators Alan Wilkins and Graeme Swann, and PBKS co-owner Preity Zinta, were seen entering their respective buses after arriving at the railway station.

“There were numerous team members and staff personnel. Additionally, there were many individuals from the BCCI, a camera crew, as well as technical and operational staff. The entire team was quite large, and their management was commendable. I would like to express my gratitude once again to BCCI and Indian Railways," stated Kuldeep Yadav, DC's left-arm wrist-spinner, in a video shared on IPL’s ‘X’ account.

The IPL 2025 match between PBKS and DC was suspended after just 10.1 overs of play during the first innings at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, due to air and drone strikes from Pakistan causing power outages in Jammu, Pathankot, and Udhampur, all located near the hill station.

Following the match cancellation, spectators were evacuated from the stadium in an orderly manner. Players and support staff from both teams, along with other personnel connected to the event in Dharamshala, returned safely to their hotels under strict security.

As Dharamshala is designated as a no-fly zone, similar to other northern Indian cities, the primary concern for high-ranking members of the BCCI was ensuring the safe departure of players and other stakeholders from Dharamshala. A late-night conference between senior BCCI officials and Indian Railways facilitated their transport from Dharamshala to Jalandhar in a bus convoy before boarding their train to New Delhi.

“Initially, the plan was to take the train from Pathankot to New Delhi, but for security and player safety, Jalandhar appeared to be a more secure option in the end. With the collaboration of police from both Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, along with other security personnel, meticulous arrangements were made to facilitate everyone's journey from Dharamshala to Jalandhar and then to New Delhi,” informed sources familiar with the developments to IANS.

The Indian Premier League also shared a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, expressing gratitude to the Railways Ministry for organizing the train.

"Thank you, @RailMinIndia, for arranging a special Vande Bharat train on such short notice to transport the players, support staff, commentators, production crew, and operations staff to New Delhi. We greatly value your rapid response," the post read, accompanied by a video showcasing the journey from Jalandhar to New Delhi.

To maintain the utmost confidentiality of the nearly 12-hour journey, passengers boarding buses from their hotels in Dharamshala were not informed in advance about their boarding location for the trip to New Delhi.

Even if someone was privy to the details, they were instructed to uphold confidentiality due to stringent security protocols and were prohibited from sharing any information on any platform, including social media, until they arrived in New Delhi.

Previously, the IPL 2025 was suspended for a week by the BCCI on Friday afternoon, due to cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan. The tournament had successfully completed 58 matches, with 12 remaining in the league stage before proceeding to the playoffs. It remains to be seen how the situation develops in the coming days to provide an opportunity for resumption of the tournament.