Mukesh Kumar dismantles Jammu and Kashmir with a devastating post-lunch spell as Rest of India complete a 167-run victory in just three and a half days.
Srinagar, Oct 2026 : Fast bowler Mukesh Kumar produced a sensational post-lunch spell to claim his 11th first-class five-wicket haul and power Rest of India to a commanding 167-run victory over Ranji Trophy champions Jammu and Kashmir in the Irani Cup here on Sunday.
The victory helped Rest of India lift the prestigious Irani Cup for a record 31st time, after a dramatic fourth-day collapse by the hosts at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium.
Chasing 279 for victory, Jammu and Kashmir were in a reasonably competitive position at 89/3 before lunch. However, their innings fell apart spectacularly after the interval, with the hosts losing their remaining seven wickets for just 22 runs and being bowled out for 111 in only 28.4 overs.
Mukesh was the principal architect of the collapse, finishing with outstanding figures of 6-33. His disciplined seam bowling, sharp lengths and ability to extract late movement proved too difficult for the J&K batters to negotiate.
The Bengal pacer produced a devastating burst in which he claimed three wickets in four deliveries, leaving the J&K middle order completely rattled.
His Bengal teammate Akash Deep, returning to competitive action, provided excellent support with 3-25. He bowled with pace and discipline and struck with the crucial wicket of opener Shubham Khajuria immediately after lunch.
Mukesh Choudhary also played an important role, removing dangerous batter Abdul Samad as Rest of India’s pace attack maintained relentless pressure.
Khajuria top-scored for Jammu and Kashmir with 36, while Qamran Iqbal made 32 and Abdul Samad contributed 20. None of the other J&K batters could withstand the sustained pressure exerted by the Rest of India bowlers.
The victory also proved a memorable birthday gift for Rest of India captain Rishabh Pant, who was unavailable on the field after being down with fever and watched the proceedings from the dugout. Sarfaraz Khan took charge as stand-in captain in the fourth innings and guided the side to a comprehensive victory.
The morning session had begun with Rest of India resuming their second innings at 306/8. They added only 13 runs before J&K fast bowler Sunil Kumar wrapped up the tail.
Sunil dismissed Smaran Ravichandran for 135 off 153 deliveries, an innings that contained 16 fours and five sixes. Smaran had also top-scored with 68 in the first innings and was subsequently named Player of the Match for his outstanding contribution.
Rest of India eventually set J&K a challenging target of 279. The hosts began their chase with some confidence but suffered a major setback when Akash Deep dismissed Khajuria with the first delivery after lunch.
That wicket triggered a dramatic collapse. Mukesh Kumar then took control, exploiting the conditions with late movement and accurate seam bowling to dismantle the middle and lower order.
Jammu and Kashmir's task was made more difficult by poor discipline earlier in the match. The hosts conceded more than 20 no-balls across their two innings, giving Rest of India additional opportunities and allowing the visitors to remain in contention after conceding a first-innings lead.
The result will serve as a significant learning experience for Jammu and Kashmir, particularly with their batting collapse coming ahead of the new Ranji Trophy season.
Jammu and Kashmir are scheduled to begin their Ranji Trophy title defence on October 11, when they face Madhya Pradesh in Srinagar. The Irani Cup defeat will provide the defending champions with several areas to address before returning to domestic competition.
For Rest of India, however, the emphatic victory capped a memorable contest. Mukesh's match-winning spell, backed by Akash Deep and Mukesh Choudhary, ensured that the team recovered strongly and secured another Irani Cup triumph.
Brief Scores: Rest of India 237 and 319 in 99.5 overs (Smaran Ravichandran 135, Sanat Sangwan 55; Sunil Kumar 3-56, Sahil Lotra 3-71) beat Jammu and Kashmir 278 and 111 in 28.4 overs (Shubham Khajuria 36, Qamran Iqbal 32; Mukesh Kumar 6-33, Akash Deep 3-25) by 167 runs.
