India’s T20 World Cup winner Shivam Dube revealed that he traveled back home to Mumbai by train from Ahmedabad after the final as the flights were fully booked. The all-rounder said he wants to get home as soon as possible to be reunited with his four-year-old son Aayan and two-year-old daughter Mehwish.
Just a few hours earlier, Dube had played a key role in this India’s dominant win over New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final at the Narendra Modi Stadium. But with flights not available late on Sunday night, the boisterous left-hander along with his wife Anjum and a friend decided to board an early morning train to Mumbai so that he could quickly return to his children. In an interview with The Indian Express, Dube explained why he chose to travel by train.
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“There was no flight available, so I decided to take a train from Ahmedabad early in the morning to Mumbai. We could have taken the road, but the train was faster,” Dube told The Indian Express.
“Me, my wife and my boyfriend decided to go by train. There were 3rd AC tickets available so we decided to book them. Everyone we talked to was scared, family and friends. What if someone recognized me at the station or on the train?”
HOW DUBE DID HIDE FROM THE PUBLIC ON THE TRAIN?
Traveling by regular train barely an hour after the T20 World Cup was lifted was always going to be risky. Shivam Dube knew that one sharp-eyed fan at a railway station or inside a bus could turn a quiet journey into a frenzy. So he and his wife Anjum planned the trip carefully and hoped they would slip by unnoticed.
Dube tried his best to blend in with the other passengers catching the morning train.
“I was wearing a cap, a mask and a full-sleeved T-shirt. There was a 5:10 train, so we hoped there wouldn’t be too many people on the platform,” he said.
The problem was that Ahmedabad was still buzzing after India’s World Cup victory. Fans in Indian jerseys were around the station and Dube quickly realized that walking onto the platform early might not be the best idea. So he changed his plan and stayed inside the car until the last possible moment.
“So I told my wife that I will wait in the car for five minutes before the train departs. After that I rush to board the train,” said Dube.
Once the big wagon was in the car, he headed straight for the top bunk and tried to stay there most of the way. The ride itself had gone smoothly, but the thought of getting off the train in Mumbai during the day still bothered him.
“I climbed out of the berth at night, but nobody recognized me on the way to the washroom and back. The train journey was smooth, but I was afraid of reaching Borivali in broad daylight. I couldn’t escape attention there,” he said.
To avoid the crowd waiting at the railway station, Dube finally approached the police before the train reached Mumbai.
“They thought I was landing at the airport but were surprised when I told them I was traveling by train. I was given a police escort so things were easy and the exit was smooth,” he added.
HOW WAS THE SHIVAM DUBE T20 WORLD CUP 2026?
Dube’s quiet train ride came after a tournament in which he played a key role in India’s middle order. Under head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav, his role has been clearly defined as a power hitter who can accelerate the innings in the later overs.
In the final against New Zealand, Dube smashed three fours and two sixes in the 20th over of India’s innings, helping the team push their total past 250 and effectively putting the match out of reach.
Throughout the tournament, Dube scored 235 runs at an average of 39 with a strike rate of around 169. He also smashed 17 sixes and 15 fours, many of them at crucial moments when India needed quick runs.
What made his tournament particularly valuable was its flexibility. Dube batted in four different positions during the competition depending on the team’s situation.
Sometimes he came in early to rebuild the shift. On other occasions, he arrived late with a simple plan — see the ball and hit it hard.
Even with Hardik Pandya in the team, Dube has emerged as another option to finish for India. On days when the team needed momentum in the closing overs, his power-hitting gave India another chance to win the match.
Two years after facing criticism after the 2024 World Cup, Dube returned in 2026 with performances that showed how much his game had evolved.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
March 11, 2026 09:12 IST
