Lucknow: Four young cricketers were killed while two others were injured after their four-wheeler rammed into a truck on the Purvanchal Expressway in Sultanpur early Wednesday morning.The accident took place around 5.15am when the six-member group was returning to Deoria from Lucknow after playing a tennis-cricket match in the state capital.The deceased were identified as Nitya Prajapati (22), Irfan Ansari (20), Aniket Singh (24) and Anand Yadav (23). The injured, Raju (22) and Jayanto Sharma (30), were initially taken to a hospital from where they were referred to the medical college in Darshan Nagar, Ayodhya, for further treatment.Sultanpur SP Vineet Jaiswal said, “We are investigating the circumstances leading to the collision and searching for the truck.”Soon after the accident, UP Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) security personnel and passers-by broke open the vehicle’s doors to rescue the people trapped inside.Preliminary investigation suggested that the driver might have dozed off while driving. “Initial findings suggested that the vehicle was travelling at a high speed when it crashed into the truck,” a police officer said.According to a player, Pawan Chaurasia, 11 cricketers from different parts of Deoria travelled to Lucknow’s Bakshi-ka-Talab area on Monday night to participate in a tennis-cricket match. After the match, the players left for Deoria in separate vehicles.“I was travelling in another car behind the ill-fated vehicle. The car belonged to one of the players, Irfan Ansari, who also worked as a travel agent,” he said.The players regularly participated in private cricket tournaments in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and other states. Their teammates described the victims as talented cricketers who were actively participating in local and private competitions.Team captain Mohit Kumar said Aniket was a versatile all-rounder. “Nitya Prajapati and Irfan Ansari were good batsmen, while Anand Yadav was a fast bowler,” he said.Injured player Jayanto Sharma said all six occupants were asleep when the accident occurred. “We were sleeping when the collision took place. When I woke up, I saw that the car had rammed into a truck and our teammates were badly injured,” he said. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem.
