Four Cricketers Killed in Sultanpur Expressway Collision
Four cricketers traveling from Lucknow to Deoria were killed when their Ertiga car collided with the rear of a truck on the Purvanchal Expressway in Sultanpur, local authorities reported. The collision occurred at approximately 5:00 a.m. Wednesday within the Baldirai police station jurisdiction, driven likely by driver fatigue as the vehicle moved at roughly 100 kilometers per hour.
The impact left the car severely damaged. Passersby and security personnel from the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) broke open the vehicle's doors to rescue the occupants, rushing them to a nearby hospital by ambulance.
Victims and Survivors of the Deoria Team
Police identified the deceased players as Nitya Prajapati (22), Irfan Ansari (20), Anand Yadav, and Aniket (24) from Bhagalpur. The survivors receiving treatment include Raju (22) from Deoria and Jayanto Sharma (30) from West Bengal’s Birbhum district, according to local police records.
Teammate Pawan Chourasia stated that a contingent of 11 players from various parts of Deoria had traveled to Bakshi Ka Talab (BKT) in Lucknow on Monday night to compete in tennis cricket representing the Deoria tennis cricket team. Following the matches, the team departed for home in separate vehicles. Chourasia traveled in a trailing car while following the ill-fated vehicle owned by Imran Ansari, which carried Nitya Prajapati, Anand Yadav, Aniket Singh, and Irfan Ansari.
On-Site Rescue and Family Backgrounds
Injured survivor Jayanto Sharma recounted that the passengers were asleep when the collision took place, waking up to find the car wedged inside the truck with their teammates covered in blood before rescuers pulled them out through the wreckage.
Family members shared details regarding the backgrounds of the young athletes. Nitya Prajapati’s father, Manoj Prajapati, works in catering in the Mail police station area of Bagaha. Irfan Ansari’s father, Iftikhar, stays at home, supporting a household with three other brothers. Aniket Singh hailed from Churiya village in Deoria’s Lar police station area, where his father, Amarjit Singh, works as a liquor store salesman alongside his mother, Rambha Devi, a homemaker, and two sisters.
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