Lone Nasir took his first first-class wickets on Thursday, and his maiden fifty from No. 10 gave J&K the Irani Cup lead
Jammu and Kashmir were 166 for 8, still 71 behind Rest of India in Srinagar, when Lone Nasir walked out. He made 64 from 58 balls and they finished 41 ahead.
Oct 2, 2026
Lone Nasir had never taken a first-class wicket before this Irani Cup. He took three on the first day. On the second, batting at No. 10, he made 64 from 58 balls, his first fifty in first-class cricket, and turned a Jammu and Kashmir deficit into a lead of 41 at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar.
J&K were 166 for 8 when he walked out, still 71 behind Rest of India’s 237. They were all out for 278. Rest of India closed on 24 for 1, needing 17 more just to draw level, with three days left.
Choudhary took five, and Rest of India still lost the lead
Mukesh Choudhary did almost everything Rest of India needed with the ball. J&K resumed on 21 for 2, and he bowled Shubham Khajuria for 4 off the inside edge, then had Qamran Iqbal caught behind by Rishabh Pant for 24. That was 37 for 4.
He finished with 5 for 78 from 19 overs. Akash Deep took 3 for 43, Mukesh Kumar 2 for 84. The attack also sent down 12 wides and six no-balls, and extras were J&K’s fourth-highest scorer with 33.
Dogra and Samad, then a wobble
Paras Dogra and Abdul Samad put on 101 for the fifth wicket. Samad was the quicker of the two, reaching fifty from 80 balls, and J&K went to lunch on 134 for 4. He fell for 57, caught by Sanat Sangwan off Mukesh Kumar, four runs after the break.
Three more went for 28. Kanhaiya Wadhawan made 12 before Choudhary had him caught by R Smaran, Abid Mushtaq was lbw to Mukesh Kumar for a two-ball duck, and Akash Deep had Sahil Lotra caught for 2. At 166 for 8, Rest of India looked set for a first-innings lead of their own.
Nasir’s 64 from No. 10
Dogra was still there, and Nasir stayed with him. The ninth-wicket pair added 64 before Choudhary had the J&K captain caught by Mukesh Kumar for 75, a 143-ball innings that held the middle of the day together. J&K were 230 for 9, seven short.
Nasir went after it from there. He reached his fifty from 48 balls, with Sunil Kumar keeping him company at the other end, and the last pair added 48 before Akash Deep trapped Nasir lbw shortly after tea. Sunil Kumar was left on 2 not out.
That lead could matter more than it looks. A drawn Irani Cup goes to the side with the first-innings lead, which is how Mumbai won it in 2024. J&K, who won their first Ranji Trophy in the 2025-26 season, now hold that edge in their first appearance in the fixture.
Sunil Kumar again
Rest of India’s second innings started slowly. Sunil Kumar, who took 3 for 36 on the first day, bowled seven overs for nine runs and had Shikhar Mohan caught behind by Wadhawan for 2. Mohan, who made 60 in the first innings, lasted 27 balls this time.
Sangwan and Sudip Kumar Gharami were both 10 not out at stumps after 15 overs. Pant and Sarfaraz Khan are still to bat.