CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ■ ■ HYDERABAD l monday l february 16, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l LATE CITY EDITION Bolt from the Blues: Meek Pak surrender without fight No handshake, no rivalry either as Ishan’s heroics and precision bowling do the job s w a r o o p s w am i nathan @ Colombo THE rain stayed away. But so did the ‘spirit of the game’ as India and Pakistan continued their recent policy of not engaging at the toss. Suryakumar Yadav didn’t greet Pakistan’s Salman Agha. The game itself was reduced to a non-event as a dominating Indian display meant they won the game by 61 runs to advance to the Super Eight stage of the World Cup where stiffer tests will arrive. After weeks of theatrics and threats of boycott, more drama arrived even before a ball was bowled in front of a capacity crowd as the two captains refused to engage with each other. Both of them stood within handshaking distance but the hands never shook. This game of political chess was made all the more inexplicable as Wasim Akram, here on media duties, and Rohit Sharma, the World Cup ambassador, greeted each other like long lost friends. They hugged and shook hands in front of the world cricket media 10 minutes before the beginning of the first innings. By the time game started, the city came to a standstill with heightened security and loud fans from the subcontinent. All pre-match discussions were immediately put to the background as Ishan Kishan continued his coruscating bat- Om Birla to attend B’desh oath ceremony R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will represent India at the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected Bangladeshi government led by BNP’s Tarique Rahman in Dhaka on Tuesday . According to a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the Speaker’s participation underscores the deep and enduring friendship between the people of the two countries. “As neighbours united by a shared history culture, and mu, tual respect, India welcomes Bangladesh’s transition to an elected gover nment under the leadership of H E Tarique Rahman, whose vision and values have received an overwhelming mandate of the people,” the MEA stated. Bangladesh had invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the event. The newly elected MPs are scheduled to take their oath on Tuesday morning, followed by the swearing-in of the cabinet in the evening. Bangladesh’s Chief Election Commissioner, AMM Nasir Uddin, is expected to administer the oath to the MPs, while President Mohammed Shahabuddin is to administer the oath to the new cabinet. India opener Ishan Kishan leads the charge with 40-ball 77 against Pakistan in Colombo on Sunday. India’s 175 was too much as Pakistan folded for just 114 | AP 8-1  Today’s Matches 11am: UAE vs Afghanistan (Delhi) 3pm: England vs Italy (Kolkata) 7pm: Sri Lanka vs Australia (Pallekele) 175 India continue to dominate Pakistan in T20 World Cups, extend record to 8 wins of 9 ting form to reduce Pakistan’s mix and match spinners. His batting has been thoroughly incandescent since the World Cup began: 20 off 16 against US, 61 off 24 against Namibia and, now, 77 of the most murderous runs you will see at a global event. He did edge a few but the only way you win the lottery is when you buy yourself a ticket. He bought a few and helped the team win the jackpot. Pakistan helped them by opting to bowl but it seemed likely the stage got to them. They were India's 175/5 is the highest total in T20 WC matches between these two teams never on the money and the Men In Blue didn’t need a second invitation to punish them on a night when they played like champions elect. For all the psychodrama and hype associated with this fixture, it has not been worthy of the build-up in terms of results. Long after the lights were switched off at the Premadasa, one thought dominated. This makes it six games on the trot for India against them in T20Is. Game. Set. Match. The Championship will follow at this rate.  P11 Step up, share gains with workers: PM to India Inc India as next AI hub Modi pitched India as a global hub for digital infrastructure and AI saying the country is ready to host the world’s data and lead the next wave of the technology revolution We now have FTAs with 38 nations, an unprecedented milestone in India’s trade history, including countries of varying economic strength Narendra Modi Press Trust of India @ New Delhi PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged the private sector to step in “more aggressively” and “boldly”, while hailing the latest Budget and a spate of global trade deals signed by his government as foundations for Viksit Bharat. In a wide-ranging interview with PTI, the prime minister urged the dynamic private corporate sector to invest “more aggressively” in research and development, adopt frontier technologies, deepen supply-chain capabilities and compete on quality and productivity rather than on protected margins. “Policy can only create the enabling framework,” he said. “The next phase of transformation requires a decisive response from private sector. In- centives and tariff preferences catalyse growth, but competitiveness rests on innovation, efficiency and scale.” The PM said gains of private sector must be shared fairly between workers, shareholders and owner-managers as productivity rises. “Sustainable growth requires social legitimacy. Rising real wages, skill upgrade, and stable employment reinforce domestic demand and social cohesion,” he said. On India concluding trade deals with the European Union and the UK, securing tariff reductions and expanded market access for goods and services, while reaching an understanding with the US to ease tariff frictions, Modi said “There is a new confidence in our nation...we are a bright spot of growth even in difficult global circumstances.” E x p r e s s Re a d Mayoral polls see late drama Indian student found dead in US Hyderabad: Shifting of loyalties and allegations of inducements marked the day ahead of the mayoral elections. In Karimnagar, six corporators joined the Congress. In Nizamabad, where the majority is 31, the BJP opted out, clearing the path for Congress to the post of mayor. More twists and turns are expected before the final votes on Monday | P4 Bengaluru: A 22-year-old Indian student studying in the US, Saketh Sreenivasaiah, who was missing since February 10, was found dead on Saturday. Indian consulate officials confirmed the recovery of his body near Lake Anza in Berkeley, California. In a social media post earlier, his roommate had mentioned that Saketh had “simply stopped caring” about life. I am a public servant, not ruler, clarifies Revanth E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Amid controversy over his “Nene Raju, Nene Mantri” (I am the king, I am the minister) remark, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Sunday clarified that the statement reflected his dual roles as the constitutional head of state and MAUD minister, not an assertion of authority . Addressing a gathering at Sant Seva Lal’s birth anniversary celebrations, he said the comment was made in the context of municipal elections. “I am not a ruler but a public servant,” he asserted. Stating that the ruling party won nearly 90% of the seats in the recent municipal polls, the chief minister accused opposition leaders of twisting his words because they could not “digest Congress’ victory”. Instead, Revanth charged, opposition leaders had long claimed they were the ones born to rule. “We do not get carried away by victory or dis- heartened by defeat. We work relentlessly for the people,” he said, adding that he would continue serving actively for the next 20 years. Revanth also hit out at BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao, alleging that the promise of a Dalit chief minister for Telangana was not fulfilled during the 10-year term of the BRS. He noted that the Congress government had appointed a Dalit person as Speaker and inducted four ministers from the Scheduled Castes (SC) community  . continued on P4 People queue up to offer prayers at the Shankaracharya Temple in Srinagar, J&K, on Sunday on the occasion of Maha Shivaratri and Herath festivals | PTI