Railways’ Upendra Yadav and Bhargav Merai have lived to fight another day.

As Monday’s final two sessions of a fourth-round Ranji Trophy contest wore on, it increasingly seemed like Bengal was going to bag all of the seven points on offer with a day to spare. The said duo, however, had other plans.

In the first session of the ongoing Elite Group C game at the Lalbhai Contractor Stadium, the home team added 91 to its overnight score, thanks to the same pair, who had managed to build a concrete perimeter around themselves while driving bowlers up the wall.

But an hour after lunch, pacer Mohammad Kaif managed to land the first punch and break Upendra’s woodwork.

Two more wickets fell in the next five deliveries. The first of those was that of Karn Sharma, whose round trip to the pitch and back was longer than his stay in the centre. The big fish Merai was snared next with Rahul Prasad have him edge to the glovesman.

A last-gasp resistance from the tailenders didn’t last long as Bengal happily triggered the follow-on clause.

Zubair’s pair

Zubair A. Khan didn’t bother the scorers in this essay as well. Pratham Singh and Vivek Singh tried stitching a partnership together, but Kaif tore a hole in the very fabric of their fragile alliance.

With Sumit Mohanta pouching a screamer at mid-on to remove Mohammad Saif, Merai was back fighting a losing battle under the hot Surat sun. Merely 26 overs of play had elapsed since his dismissal in the previous innings. However, it was Vivek who blinked first as Anustup Majumdar took a sharp catch in the slip.

Shahbaz Ahmed stuck to a tight channel to account for Suraj Ahuja. The wicket meant Merai had a familiar face for company again with Railways trailing by 162 runs ahead of the final day’s play.

The scores:

Bengal — 1st innings: 474.

Railways — 1st innings: Zubair A. Khan c Gharami b Jaiswal 0, Vivek Singh b Jaiswal 4, Pratham Singh c Shakir b Jaiswal 11, Mohammad Saif lbw b Jaiswal 0, Bhargav Merai c Shakir b Rahul 91, Suraj Ahuja lbw Shahbaz 19, Upendra Yadav b Kaif 70, Karn Sharma c Shakir b Kaif 0, Akash Pandey c Purohit b Rahul 1, Adarsh Singh b Bhati 13, Kunal Yadav (not out) 3; Extras (w-2, b-4, lb-4): 10; Total (in 86.3 overs): 222.

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-7, 3-11, 4-16, 5-55, 6-203, 7-203, 8-203, 9-208.

Bengal bowling: Jaiswal 17-4-35-4, Mohanta 8-3-25-0, Kaif 18-5-48-2, Shahbaz 20-4-42-1, Bhati 9.3-0-30-1, Rahul 14-1-34-2.

Railways — 2nd innings: Zubair A. Khan b Shahbaz 0, Vivek Singh c Anustup b Rahul 29, Pratham Singh c Shakir b Kaif 9, Mohammad Saif c Mohanta b Rahul 3, Bhargav Merai (batting) 20, Suraj Ahuja lbw b Shahbaz 12, Upendra Yadav (batting) 12; Extras (nb-1, b-2, lb-2): 5; Total (for five wkts. in 39 overs): 90.

Fall of wickets: 1-5, 2-35, 3-42, 4-43, 5-66.

Bengal bowling: Jaiswal 4-3-8-0, Shahbaz 14-3-26-2, Rahul 11-1-34-2, Kaif 6-2-10-1, Bhati 4-2-8-0.

Published – November 10, 2025 08:25 pm IST

Oh wait, the track is not alone. The track sleeps on the stone bed.  
| Photo Credit: Unsplash Images

New Delhi:

Millions of devotees from across India have been visiting the ongoing Maha Kumbh mela in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj – one that is held every 12 years – causing a huge rush in trains and traffic on roads. A wave of stampede-like incidents and angry passengers breaking train windows as they were unable to board the train to Maha Kumbh amid the rush have come to light recently.

Last night, at least 18 people, including 11 women and five children, died after a huge crowd of passengers caused by two delayed trains and a special Express train to Maha Kumbh led to a stampede at the New Delhi Railway station.

While eyewitnesses claimed that the stampede took place after a rumour spread among people that the Prayagraj Express was going to arrive on a different platform, the Railway authorities have repeatedly denied it. Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, CPRO Northern Railway said that there was already a huge rush on the station’s platform when a passenger slipped on the nearby stairs, leading to the deadly stampede.

According to the official, platforms number 13 and 14 at the New Delhi Railway station were already crowded as many people were waiting to board two trains – Magdh Express and another going towards Jammu – which were delayed. Amid this, a special train for Maha Kumbh, the Prayagraj Express, was to leave at 10:10 pm from platform number 14. As the time for the train to Prayagraj neared, more and more people started gathering on the platform, adding to the existing rush. During this time, more than a thousand general tickets were bought by passengers to go to Maha Kumbh, officials said.

“Trains were not cancelled, and the platform was not changed. All trains have been running as per its schedule,” he said.

The Railways has also formed a two-member high-level committee to probe the incident. Narsingh Deo, Principal Chief Commercial Manager of Northern Railway and Pankaj Gangwar, Principal Chief Security Commissioner of Northern Railway are a part of the committee, officials said.

The committee, which has commenced its inquiry, gave orders to secure all video footage of the New Delhi Railway Station.

How Railways is managing Maha Kumbh rush in Prayagraj

As millions of people are visiting Prayagraj, the railway authorities have made extensive security measures across the city’s stations.

Shashikant Tripathi, CRPO of North Central Railway told NDTV that they have been maintaining protocol at all railway stations in the city. “Through these protocols, either on normal day rush or key days like ‘mauni amavasiya’, we have made a smooth entry and exit for passengers. With the help of colour-coded areas, we have helped the passengers board and deboard trains safely.”

According to him, they do not need to enforce any new protocols.

“We have been working well with these protocols. In the case of Prayagraj junction, we only allow the passengers to enter through the city side and the exit is done through civil lines side. We have 4 passenger sheds which are colour-coded and directions have been defined on them. Whenever the limit of passengers crosses at these sheds, we activate the Kusrow Bagh area – from where the passengers can travel. All basic amenities have also been provided at these locations,” he added.

Watch: Union Budget 2025 | What’s in it for Railways? 

Allocation to developing customer amenities in Indian Railways has continued to decline from ₹15,510 crore in FY 2024-25 (budget estimate) to ₹12,993.97 crore (revised estimates) and now to ₹12,118.39 crore in the FY 2025-26. Also, the allocation for investment in PSUs and joint ventures has gone down from the revised estimate of ₹27,570.77 crore in FY 2024-25 to ₹22,444.33 crore in FY 2025-26.

Credits

Reporting: Porecha Maitri Mukund

Video: Sabika Syed

Editing: Aniket Singh Chauhan

As day three of the Ranji Trophy Group D match between Delhi and Railways resumed at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday, the sight of black covers installed on the edge of Bishan Singh Bedi stand adjacent to the dressing room situated in the Virat Kohli Pavilion stood out. Asked about the same, DDCA sources told IANS that the black covers were installed early on Saturday morning after both Delhi and Railways teams were being disturbed by noise made by fans who were crowding near the edge of the dressing room situated in the Bishan Singh Bedi stand for the last two days.

That chanting grew louder when fans surrounded the edge during day two’s play on Friday to have a glimpse of the talismanic Virat Kohli, who was seated in the Delhi team dressing room balcony after being dismissed for six, by chanting names of him, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and his nickname ‘Cheeku’.

“Both Delhi and Railways teams were being disturbed by shouting from fans surrounding the edge of the dressing room in the Bishan Singh Bedi stand over last two days, and complained of it. As a result, the DDCA and security officials decided that black covers would be installed on the aforementioned edge for day three’s play on Saturday. Additionally, from a security point of view, gates 17 and 18 have been closed too for fans’ entry on Saturday,” added the sources.

For day three’s play, fans eager to watch the action at the Arun Jaitley Stadium will be seated in Gautam Gambhir and Mohinder Amarnath stands, with the Old Clubhouse stands housing the DDCA members. Despite no entry on West stand, the small number of spectators have been relentlessly shouting Kohli’s name.

Coming to the match, Delhi added only 40 runs to its overnight total and were all out for 374 in 106.4 overs, thus taking a 133-run lead over Railways. Sumit Mathur eventually made 86 while Navdeep Saini chipped in with a handy 20 not out.

For Railways, fast-bowler Himanshu Sangwan was the pick of bowlers with 4-55, including uprooting Kohli’s off-stump on day two’s play. He was well-supported by pacer Kunal Yadav taking 3-104, while Rahul Sharma, Ayan Chaudhari and Karn Sharma took a wicket each.

Railways pacer Himanshu Sangwan found himself in the collective consciousness of Indian cricket followers after taking the “most important wicket of his life,” dismissing superstar Virat Kohli in a Ranji Trophy match against Delhi on Friday. Sangwan, who played U-19 cricket for Delhi alongside the likes of Rishabh Pant before moving to Railways, uprooted the superstar’s off-stump in the first session on day two to grab the limelight. He celebrated the prized wicket with full enthusiasm, unmindful of the attention he had attracted on social media with his exploits.

After stumps on day two, the 29-year-old ticket collector in Northern Railways did hope his ‘Kohli’ moment will lead to something ‘life-changing’.

“It is the most important wicket of my life. It goes without saying. Virat Kohli is an inspiration to the whole country,” said Sangwan, who is in the middle of his 24th first class game having made his debut for Railways back in 2019.

Thousands of fans turning up at the stadium because of Kohli provided an extra dose of motivation for Sangwan.

“First time in life I saw so many people turning up for a Ranji Trophy game. It was special for all of us,” he said.

After a couple of play and misses in his vulnerable zone — outside the off-stump — Kohli went on the offensive in the following over bowled by Sangwan.

Standing way outside the crease, Kohli disdainfully dispatched Sangwan towards the straight boundary.

The very next ball, Kohli went for an expansive drive off a good length delivery but missed it completely to see his off-stump shattered.

The cricketing icon had struggled with outside the off-stump line throughout the tour of Australia. Considering that, did Sangwan and Co. have a set plan for the former India captain? “We did not plan for one particular batter.

Majority of the Delhi batters like to attack so our plan was stick to channel bowling and draw the outside edge,” said the cricketer from Charkhi Dadri in Haryana. He is now settled in Najafgarh.

Sangwan also gave due credit to Railways for giving him an opportunity after he could not make the senior team in Delhi.

Will remember this game for life

Sumit Mathur and skipper Ayush Badoni ensured a healthy first innings lead with their 133-run stand forthe fifth wicket. The left-hander remains not out on 78 with Delhi reaching 334 for seven in response to Railways’ 241.

Sumit too spoke about the experience of playing a game involving Kohli.

“I will remember this time for the rest of my life. He has mingled with us nicely and it is a different experience to play alongside him. As long as I play the game I will remember this moment,” said Mathur.

Kohli is playing a domestic red-ball game after 12 years.

Delhi vs Railways Day 3 Live Updates, Ranji Trophy© PTI

Day 2 of the ongoing Ranji Trophy match between Delhi and Railways was a total rollercoaster for the hosts. The day began with the heartbreaking dismissal of India star batter Virat Kohli for 5, who failed to leave a mark on his return to Ranji Trophy. Following this, skipper Ayush Badoni flaunted his batting skills and brought Delhi back into the game. He was looking flawless in his approach but his dream of bringing up his century was shattered after he was dismissed by Karn Sharma for 99.

During the 56th over, Badoni went for a slog sweep against Sharma but the ball hit the top edge and was caught by Kunal Yadav.

Seeing the young captain missing his century by a whisker, Kohli gave a disappointing look while sitting in the dugout.

Virat Kohli’s reactions and he was disappointed when Ayush Badoni got out on 99 runs. pic.twitter.com/O5xxJAdvK4

— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) January 31, 2025

Talking about the match, resuming the day at 41/1, Delhi were able to get past Railways’ 241 courtesy a 133-run stand between Badoni (99 off 77) and Sumit Mathur (78 not out off 189). At stumps, Delhi had taken a 93-run lead by reaching 334/7.

Badoni put the opposition bowlers under pressure with a fearless display of stroke-making before falling to a slog sweep of leg-spinner Karn Sharma in the 56th over.

Railways pacers were a tad unlucky in not getting a breakthrough in the first hour of play with Yash Dhull (32 off 69) and Sanat Sangwan living dangerously. After a few streaky boundaries, Dhull played a copybook cover drive before being adjudged leg before wicket off left-arm pacer Rahul Sharma.

Dhull’s dismissal brought Virat Kohli to the middle, drawing a loud roar from the fans. However, the joy of fans was short-lived as the superstar went for an expansive drive off Himanshu Sangwan but the missed the ball completely to see his off-stump uprooted.

Kohli had drilled a straight boundary the ball before but standing outside the crease, he went for the attack again only to miss the ball that seamed back in slightly.

Sangwan also breached the defenses of opener Sanat Sangwan (30 off 81) in the following over leaving Delhi at 97 for four in the 30th over.

Delhi captain Badoni then led from the front to put his team in a strong position. He took the attack to Railways especially left-arm spinner Ayan Chaudhari, dispatching him for three sixes.

He entered into his 90s with back-to-back sixes before mistiming a sweep off Karn Sharma to be caught at short fine-leg on 99. The sweep had yielded him the desired results until his dismissal in the 56th over.

Badoni’s innings comprised 12 fours and three sixes. It was an innings that underlined his contribution to Delhi’s campaign this season. He is both the leading run-getter and leading wicket-taker for his team in Ranji Trophy.

(With PTI Inputs)

Himanshu Sangwan claimed the prized wicket but also saw the stadium empty out soon after.© X (Twitter)

The Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi was packed with eager fans on the second day of the Ranji Trophy clash between Delhi and Railways. The reason was clear–Virat Kohli. Among the fans was Karan Kaushal, a passionate Kohli admirer who even shares a resemblance to the Indian batting maestro. Expressing his excitement, he said, “I am thrilled to be here today, and I’m confident Kohli will score a hundred. People have been telling me for the last ten years that I look like him…I’ve been keeping this beard for only three years…I think he will stick to the basics, and we’ll get to witness every shot from him today.”

Another fan, also a Kohli lookalike, shared his enthusiasm for the occasion.

“People often confuse me with Virat Kohli, and it’s always a fun experience but beyond that, I am really looking forward to seeing his signature cover drive today. I also believe that senior players participating in domestic cricket is crucial, it motivates young players and strengthens the overall game,” he said.

Whether he makes a century or not, his presence alone had already made this Ranji Trophy fixture a memorable event.

The anticipation in the stadium was palpable, with fans eagerly waiting for a Delhi wicket to fall–just so they could watch their hero walk out to bat. Whether Kohli delivers a memorable innings or not, his mere presence in domestic cricket has already given these fans an unforgettable experience.

The Delhi stadium was buzzing and filled with excitement on Day 1, a sight not common for domestic cricket matches, with fans awaiting action from their hero whose recent performances have been mostly disappointing. Some additional gates were opened to accommodate fans and additional security deployed. As per ESPNCricinfo, over 15,000 fans attended the match.

The Group D clash also saw a fan breaching security as he rushed onto the field to meet Virat Kohli. With Delhi’s opening bowlers, Navdeep Saini and Siddhant Sharma, having Railways in trouble at 21/3, the person managed to evade security and reach Kohli and touched his feet. Security personnel quickly intervened and escorted the intruder off the field. Kohli requested them to go easy on the fan and avoid any harsh treatment.