Asian Games: India crush Bangladesh to enter final of men's cricket
Hangzhou (PTI): Title favourites India confirmed a medal in men's cricket competition with a crushing nine-wicket win over Bangladesh to storm into the final of the Asian Games here on Friday.
India skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad's decision to field first after winning the toss was vindicated by his bowlers, who produced a disciplined effort to restrict Bangladesh to a below-par 96 for nine.
In reply, the Indians hardly faced any difficulty and completed the task in 9.2 overs to storm into the final in their maiden appearance in the cricket competition at the continental showpiece.
India lost the talented Yashasvi Jaiswal for zero in the very first over but that was the only success Bangladesh had as skipper Gaikwad (40 not out off 26 balls; 4x4, 3x6) and Tilak Varma (55 not out; 26b; 2x4, 6x6) sealed the win with 64 balls to spare in the T20I match.
Rising allrounder Varma, who struck a 25-ball fifty, had an emotional celebration after reaching the milestone when he lifted his shirt to reveal a tattoo dedicated to his parents.
India will take on the winners of Pakistan and Afghanistan in the gold medal clash on Saturday.
Sai Kishore was the most successful bowler for India as he finished with excellent figures of 3/12 from four overs, while Washington Sundar also bowled impressively to end with a tidy 2/15 in his full quota of overs.
There was a wicket apiece for Arshdeep Singh, Tilak Varma, Ravi Bishnoi and Shahbaz Ahmed.
The duo of Gaikwad and Varma toyed with the Bangladesh bowling and were mostly dealing in fours and sixes at the small Zhejiang University of Technology Cricket Field.
Bangladesh's bowlers had no answer to the onslaught launched by Ruturaj and Tilak who seemed to be competing with each other in hitting fours and sixes.
Earlier, Sai Kishore and Washington struck in tandem to restrict Bangladesh who struggled against the slow bowlers.
For Bangladesh, Parvez Hossain Emon (23), Jaker Ali (24 not out), and Rakibul Hasan (14) were the notable contributors with the bat.
While Ali remained not out, Shahbaz ended Rakibul's cameo when he had the batter caught in the 17th over. Before that, Tilak cut short Emon's 32-ball stay in the middle.
In Arshdeep, India have surprisingly picked only one seamer in their playing XI, while Shahbaz Ahmed made his T20I debut for India.
Brief Scores
Bangladesh 96/9; 20 overs (Jaker Ali 24 not out, Parvez Hossain Emon 23; Sai Kishore 3/12, Washington Sundar 2/15) lost to India 97/1; 9.2 overs (Tilak Varma 55 not out, Ruturaj Gaikwad 40 not out) by nine wickets.
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Allahabad HC orders probe into 'reinstatement' of teacher in UP's Barabanki
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered a probe by the special task force (STF) into alleged irregularities in the rejoining of a teacher at City Intermediate College in Barabanki, observing that the reinstatement appeared to be prima facie illegal.
The court also directed the recovery of the salary paid to the teacher during the disputed period.
A bench of Justice Rajeev Singh passed the order on a petition filed by the college management committee. The court expressed doubts over the roles of the District Inspector of Schools (DIOS), Barabanki, the college principal and the teacher concerned and hence, directed a detailed inquiry into the matter.
Taking note of alleged manipulation of records and misleading submissions, the court ordered the immediate transfer of the Barabanki DIOS to ensure a fair probe. It also directed the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the then joint director of education of the Ayodhya division.
In its order, the court found that the teacher, Abhay Kumar, was initially appointed as an assistant teacher in 2018 but joined an Eklavya Model Residential School in Chhattisgarh as a lecturer in June 2024 without obtaining permission from the management. His subsequent request to retain the lien was rejected.
Despite this, he was allowed to rejoin the Barabanki College in September 2025 on the directions of the joint director of education and the DIOS, and was even paid the salary for October 2025. The court termed the rejoining "wholly illegal" and lacking any legal basis.
The bench also expressed concern over lapses in communication within the education department and directed the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary to ensure that official orders are communicated through email and WhatsApp as well, to prevent disputes.
The matter is next listed for hearing on May 28 when a compliance report is sought.
