By the middle of the afternoon session on day two of the Irani Cup fixture at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium, the faces in the Jammu & Kashmir dugout appeared to have turned glum. The spectators, barring a few quips towards Rest of India skipper Rishabh Pant, had also fallen silent.

It reflected J&K’s plight, having been reduced to 166 for eight. It was still 71 runs adrift of RoI’s first-innings total of 237 with just two wickets in hand.

Barely an hour later, the mood swayed. The smiles in the J&K camp returned. So did the cheers of the sparse crowd. It was all thanks to a rearguard 64-run partnership between Paras Dogra (75, 143b, 6×4, 1×6) and Lone Nasir (64, 58b, 8×4, 3×6) for the ninth wicket, enabling J&K, which was 21 for two overnight, to finish its first innings on 278 and secure a 41-run lead.

Choudhary scalps five

The recovery ended up overshadowing left-arm pacer Mukesh Choudhary’s figures of 19-2-78-5 for the visitors. The day drew to a close with RoI reaching 24 for one in its second essay.

Dogra had been gritty until the fall of the host’s eighth wicket, accumulating his runs quietly and letting Abdul Samad (57, 88b, 5×4, 1×6) hog the limelight in a fifth-wicket stand of 101. But once the 41-year-old was confronted with the threat of running out of partners, he acted with greater intent.

As runs started to flow more frequently, Pant started feeling the pinch. He resorted to a barrage of short balls from his quicks, but Dogra and Nasir, aware of what was coming given the field set, rocked back and feasted with a flurry of boundaries.

Dogra eventually pulled Choudhary awkwardly to Mukesh Kumar at fine-leg. Even then, Nasir, who struck thrice on the opening day, maintained the onslaught with a 48-run partnership alongside Sunil Kumar for the last wicket. Nasir treated Mukesh with special disdain, smashing his half-trackers for three maximums.

The scores:

Rest of India — 1st innings: 237.

Jammu & Kashmir — 1st innings: Qamran Iqbal c Pant b Choudhary 24, Shubham Pundir c Pant b Choudhary 1, Umar Nazir c Pant b Akash 4, Shubham Khajuria b Choudhary 4, Paras Dogra c Mukesh b Choudhary 75, Abdul Samad c Sangwan b Mukesh 57, Kanhaiya Wadhawan c Smaran b Choudhary 12, Abid Mushtaq lbw b Mukesh 0, Sahil Lotra c Sangwan b Akash 2, Lone Nasir lbw b Akash 64, Sunil Kumar (not out) 2; Extras (b-12, lb-3, w-12, nb-6): 33; Total (in 64.2 overs): 278.

Fall of wickets: 1-16, 2-21, 3-36, 4-37, 5-138, 6-156, 7-157, 8-166, 9-230.

RoI bowling: Mukesh 17-2-84-2, Choudhary 19-2-78-5, Akash 14.2-3-43-3, Manav 9-1-32-0, Saransh 5-0-26-0.

RoI — 2nd innings: Shikhar Mohan c Wadhawan b Sunil 2, Sanat Sangwan (batting) 10, Sudip Gharami (batting) 10; Extras (b-1, nb-1): 2; Total (for one wkt. in 15 overs): 24

Fall of wicket: 1-8.

J&K bowling: Umar 6-2-10-0, Sunil 7-3-9-1, Nasir 2-0-4-0.

Published – October 02, 2026 07:42 pm IST

BCCI president Mithun Manhas, joined by RoI skipper Rishabh Pant, rings the ceremonial bell at the start of Irani Cup match at Sher-I-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar, Thursday, 01, October 2026.
| Photo Credit: IMRAN NISSAR

Dogra was optimistic ahead of the Irani Cup clash.
| Photo Credit: Imran Nissar

Pant prepares for the Irani Cup.
| Photo Credit: Imran Nissar

Jammu and Kashmir will face Rest of India in the Irani Cup.
| Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar

Khaleel Ahmed gave Shardul Thakur a warm hug when they came across each other at the practice facility in the Bharat Ratna Shree Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium. Prithvi Shaw during his chat with Abhimanyu Easwaran proudly introduced the senior opener to “Virar boy” Ayush Mhatre. While Ajinkya Rahane and Ruturaj Gaikwad were involved in a candid chat with each other on either side of the customary captains’ briefing with match officials.

The camaraderie and the bonhomie between Mumbai and the Rest of India (RoI) squad members was natural and evident. Come Tuesday, however, and the competitive side of the individuals and the groups – something that didn’t come to the fore as much during the Duleep Trophy with a tweaked format – will be on display as the inter-state season will kind of kick off with the Z.R. Irani Cup tie.

The Duleep Trophy may have got the domestic First Class going but the sense of playing for the team’s cause will kick in from Tuesday as Mumbai try and regain the Irani Cup – not trophy, as it is loosely referred to – after almost three decades.

Beating a mighty Rest of India – with an ensemble of available stars in India – is considered to be the ultimate test for a Ranji champion side. It is the dream start to their Ranji title defence that Rahane and Co. can aspire for. Having last won the Irani tie way back in 1997-98, Rahane’s Mumbai will be keen on adding another silverware to its rich trophy cabinet.

But even Rahane will realise the task is easier said than done. If his side will be bolstered with the presence of Sarfaraz Khan – released from India’s Test squad on Monday evening – he will know that RoI will also have Yash Dayal and Dhruv Jurel at its disposal.

Their addition will mean additional selection woes for both the camps. It will be interesting to see if Mumbai hand debut to promising youngster Mhatre or Siddhesh Lad will don the Lion’s crest in a First Class match after four years.

Beyond the team make-up, bigger selection battles will be on display, with an eye on a plane to Australia. That Australia selection tussle could well work as perfect topping for what appears to be a clash poised to live up to its billing. 

The squads

Rest of India: Ruturaj Gaikwad (Capt.), Abhimanyu Easwaran (Vice-capt.), Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Manav Suthar, Saransh Jain, Prasidh Krishna, Mukesh Kumar, Yash Dayal, Ricky Bhui, Shashwat Rawat, Khaleel Ahmed, Rahul Chahar.

Mumbai: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan, Ayush Mhatre, Shreyas Iyer, Siddhesh Lad, Suryansh Shedge, Hardik Tamore (wk), Siddhant Addhatrao (wk), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Himanshu Singh, Shardul Thakur, Mohit Avasthi, Mohammad Juned Khan, Royston Dias.
Ends