TOI Sports reporter attacked in London: ‘Alone at midnight after Lord’s Test, I faced the scariest moment of my life’ | Cricket News

TOI Sports reporter Sahil Malhotra was attacked in London on Monday.

TimesofIndia.com in London: It was near midnight, and the overhead practice line was about to achieve Northwick Park Station — my remaining vacation spot. The match had ended at Lord’s a number of hours earlier, and after a fast chew and lots of strolling close to Tower Bridge with my colleagues overlaying the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, everybody dispersed in their respective instructions.My stretch did not overlap with anybody, so I coated the final leg of the journey dwelling alone — similar to I had the previous week in London. Northwick Park Station wears a abandoned look throughout the midnight hours, however I had by no means felt something suspicious over the previous week. Monday night time, nonetheless, turned out to be completely different.Right after leaving the station, I took the exit in direction of my lodging at Lulworth Avenue and continued to hum my favorite songs. It felt like enterprise as standard earlier than I took the quick flip from the station and noticed 5 males, in their 20s, approaching me. Right from their physique language to how they coated half their faces with balaclavas — nothing felt proper about that moment.I froze immediately as a result of I had lots of costly gear on me: a laptop computer, two cell telephones, and private belongings. Two of the 5 began strolling in direction of me whereas the different three continued strolling to the station to maintain a watch on the highway. The scene felt straight out of a Bollywood film in the residential neighbourhood, which wasn’t generously lit.

I was instantly reminded of my travelling colleagues being ill-treated and abused by drunk hooligans earlier than the day’s play started. And right here I was, at the coronary heart of it, alone, in the wee hours of the night time.The first response was to take a number of steps again, and that’s when one of them charged aggressively and mentioned, “Calm down, bro. We just want to talk.” Of course, this was hardly the moment to stay calm as a result of I knew what was subsequent. The very subsequent second, the second man requested me for the digicam as a result of I was carrying a cumbersome tripod in my hand.When they did not get the excellent response from me, one of them implored me to take away the smartwatch from my left wrist. It was then that I began yelling as adrenaline and panic took over. As one of the masked males reached for a knife in his jacket, I gave the tripod a wild swing, they usually took a number of steps again.In that cut up moment, I began working for my life — fairly actually — and yelled the choicest expletives in Punjabi, hoping somebody from the close by homes would come for assist. While none of that occurred, one man chased me for 50m — which felt for much longer — earlier than he took a U-turn as the subsequent neighbourhood was higher lit.

Still shaken, the very first thing I did was name my spouse, who was deep in sleep as a result of it was near 5am IST. But I wanted to listen to a well-recognized voice then, and when I regained composure, the subsequent name went to my colleagues with whom I was sharing the lodging.In a cut up second, they rushed to my location, calmed me down, and collectively we walked dwelling. I was nonetheless in a state of shock as a result of it was a slender escape from a mugging — or worse.Numerous ideas circled in my head. What if that they had managed to get the knife out? Materialistically, what if that they had taken my valuables — some private and a few official? What if that they had gotten away with my passport as properly?The ideas stored crossing my thoughts, however in that moment I regarded at my tripod and smiled. I had cursed it the moment I took the flight to England as a result of it had value me Rs. 9,000 in extra baggage fees as a consequence of the measurement. Yet, right here I was. On my final day in London, that piece of metallic saved my life, gear, and belongings.