Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Skips Class 10 Exams to Focus on IPL 2026 with Rajasthan Royals Story: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will not appear for his Class 10 board exams this year. The 14-year-old cricketer is focusing on IPL 2026 preparations instead. His coach Manish Ojha confirmed the decision. "He won't be giving the Class X exams. He is currently in Nagpur preparing for the upcoming IPL," Ojha told India Today. Sooryavanshi has joined Rajasthan Royals' pre-season camp. He was Player of the Tournament at the U19 World Cup 2026. He scored 439 runs in seven matches. In the final against England, he smashed 175 runs off 80 balls. His innings included 15 sixes. He hit 30 sixes in the tournament, breaking the previous record of 18. (PC: X)

Social media platform X faced a widespread outage on Monday, with users across India and several other countries reporting access issues. Many said the app failed to load feeds, searches, and posts. Outage tracker Downdetector showed 3,357 reports from India around 7:30 pm IST. Globally, more than 42,000 users flagged problems, including in the United States and the UK. Downdetector data showed 53 per cent users had trouble with the app, 22 per cent could not refresh feeds, and 16 per cent faced website errors. The Elon Musk-owned platform did not issue an immediate statement. The cause of the disruption was not confirmed. (PC: HT)

Pakistan are likely to leave out Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi for their next T20 World Cup match against Namibia, according to a PTI report. The move follows their 61-run defeat to India in Colombo. A team management source said the decision came after internal talks late at night. PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi reportedly showed displeasure over the performance and left the stadium early. Head coach Mike Hesson also spoke to players in the dressing room. The source said the plan is to try Salman Mirza or Naseem Shah and Fakhar Zaman. If results improve, the senior duo may not return this tournament. (PC: X)

The National Green Tribunal has dismissed petitions against the Rs 80,000 crore Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project and allowed it to move forward. A six-member bench said it found “no good ground to interfere” with the environmental clearance. The tribunal noted there were “adequate safeguards” in the approval conditions. It also highlighted the “strategic importance of the project.” The bench directed authorities to ensure “full and strict compliance” with all clearance conditions. The project includes a transhipment port, airport, township and power plant. Some activists had raised concerns about forest diversion and coastal regulation violations. (PC: The Indian Express)

The Supreme Court made strong oral remarks on pre-marital physical relations while hearing a bail plea in a rape case linked to a promise of marriage. The bench said caution is needed before such relationships. Justice BV Nagarathna said, “Maybe we are old-fashioned but… we fail to understand how they can be in a physical relationship before marriage.” The case involves a man accused of promising marriage despite already being married. The woman said they met on a matrimonial site and later travelled together. The court noted it appeared to be a consensual relationship and referred the matter to mediation. Hearing will continue Wednesday. (PC: NDTV)

Arinox AI and KOGO have introduced what they call India’s first sovereign “AI in a box” system for enterprises at the AI Impact Summit 2026. The product, named CommandCORE, is built to run AI locally without internet dependence. The companies say this helps protect sensitive data and reduce cloud costs. The system uses Nvidia hardware and supports agent-based AI tools for business tasks. “The future of AI is private,” said KOGO CEO Raj K Gopalakrishnan. He added that firms must keep their intelligence in-house. Pricing starts at ₹10 lakh and targets sectors like banking, government and defence. (PC: HT)

A garment factory worker in Bangladesh was killed by a mob after being accused of insulting the Prophet Muhammad, according to police and local reports. Dipu Chandra Das, 28, was taken from his workplace in Mymensingh after rumours spread. Investigators say he was beaten by a large crowd and later burned near a highway. Police said about 150 people took part and 22 have been arrested so far. An officer called it a “hate crime” and said more suspects are being traced. The killing led to protests and international concern. Authorities have promised compensation and support for the victim’s family. (PC: BBC)

India captain Suryakumar Yadav asked his teammates to stay calm and avoid sledging Pakistan during their T20 World Cup match, according to a behind-the-scenes video released by the BCCI. The dressing room clip shows Suryakumar stressing discipline and focus before the game. He told players to let their performance speak instead of words. India followed the approach on the field and kept their behavior controlled throughout the contest. The plan worked well as India dominated Pakistan and won by 61 runs. The victory also confirmed India’s place in the Super 8 stage of the tournament. 

Newly released documents in the Jeffrey Epstein case show that an Indian girl was listed among victims and US officials tried to trace her for compensation support. An internal email dated January 13, 2020 mentioned efforts to locate her in India. Officials wrote that they would work with the US embassy if her address and contact details were found. The email subject read “Epstein Victims” and several parts were blacked out. The message also explained steps for victim compensation claims. It mentioned paperwork to be sent to the FBI and therapy support under emergency victim assistance programs. (PC: NDTV)

Rashid Khan became the first cricketer to take 700 wickets in T20 matches during Afghanistan’s T20 World Cup 2026 game against UAE. The milestone came when he dismissed Muhammad Arfan in the 16th over. Rashid finished with 1 for 24 from four overs. UAE scored 160 for 9 in 20 overs. Afghanistan chased the target and won by five wickets. Ibrahim Zadran made 53, while Azmatullah Omarzai scored an unbeaten 40 to seal the result. Rashid reached the mark in 513 innings. He already leads the T20I wicket list and stays far ahead of other active bowlers. (PC: India Today)