Pietermaritzburg: India's World Cup squad will relive history on Friday when it boards a train that Mahatma Gandhi took 110 years ago and sparked the independence movement against British rule.

The Indians, here to play Namibia on Sunday, will undertake a symbolic 10-minute ride from nearby Pentrich to Pietermaritzburg in the Gandhi memorial train before a practice session.

The steam train is the same one in which Gandhi, then a young lawyer, travelled in 1893, only to be taken off and his luggage thrown out on the Pietermaritzburg station because he was a non-white.

The incident forced Gandhi to return to India and launch the fight for independence which was achieved in 1947. "The boys are quite excited at the chance to relive history," team official Amrit Mathur said.

The ceremonial ride, being organised by the local council, will end with a visit to Gandhi's statue in the town. Gandhi, one of the greatest personalities of world history, is regarded as the Father of the Indian Nation.

Copyright AFP 2001