As the players slugged it out in the nets, they were joined by Dharamveer Singh Pal, who cannot stand on his two legs but lives a charmed life mingling with Team India members wherever they go to play matches in the country.

The boy from Gwalior has not gained the status of Sri Lanka’s Percy Abeshekhara or Pakistan’s “Chacha Cricket” but Dharamveer has been almost a 12th member of the Indian contingent wherever the team goes.

A childhood polio attack does not allow him move on his legs but the boy with an indomitable spirit has not let it affect his morale.

“Call it addiction but I have to travel wherever the team goes,” said the boy from Madhya Pradesh, who is in Kanpur with the Indian team for the final Test against South Africa.

Looking tired after ‘training’ with Yuvraj Singh and Rahul Dravid, the 18-year-old said, “For the past three years, I am accompanying the team during its matches in various cities.