Srinagar, Oct 1 — Fast bowlers enjoyed an upper hand on a lush green pitch as Jammu & Kashmir restricted the Rest of India side to 237 before losing two early wickets on Day One of the 2026/27 Irani Cup match at the picturesque Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium here on Thursday.
Pace spearheads Sunil Kumar (3-36) and Lone Nasir Muzaffar (3-59), alongside Umar Nazir Mir (2-65), picked up eight wickets between them after J&K skipper Paras Dogra chose to field on a spicy pitch which resembled a grass court at Wimbledon.
But the Rest of India's pace attack responded strongly, with Akash Deep and Mukesh Choudhary picking a scalp each and reducing the hosts to 21/2 in seven overs at stumps. J&K trail by 216 runs with Qamran Iqbal (12 not out) and Shubham Khajuria (yet to get off the mark) at the crease.
In the morning, J&K struck early when Sunil had opener Sanat Sangwan (4) caught behind. Nasir then removed Sudip Kumar Gharami (2), before the Rest of India rebuilt through opener Shikhar Mohan (60) and vice-captain Sarfaraz Khan (45), who forged a watchful 76-run third-wicket partnership off 133 balls.
Mohan struck nine boundaries and a six in making 60 off 118 balls, while Sarfaraz displayed sound judgment, leaving deliveries outside off-stump and using his backfoot play effectively to make 45 off 97 balls, laced with five boundaries.
J&K turned the tide in the afternoon session as Nasir double-bluffed Mohan into a loose drive outside off and had him caught behind shortly after lunch. Sarfaraz was strangled down leg off Nazir, who then dismissed captain Rishabh Pant (10) after the wicketkeeper-batter miscued to short cover-point.
From a comfortable 108/2, Rest of India slipped to 155/7, losing five wickets for 22 runs in the afternoon session. Middle-order batter Ravichandran Smaran anchored the tail to lift Rest of India past the 200-run mark. Smaran scored a fighting 68 off 83 balls, adding 39 runs for the eighth wicket with Akash Deep (22) and another 43 runs for the ninth wicket alongside Mukesh Choudhary (2). Smaran's counter-attacking knock included eight boundaries and a six before he was the last man dismissed.
In reply, J&K struggled against the moving ball in late evening conditions. Choudhary got Shubham Pundir (1) caught behind after a successful DRS review. Nightwatchman Nazir lasted just nine balls before edging a sharp bouncer from Akash Deep to Pant on the penultimate ball of the day, as an eventful day of red-ball cricket came to a close.
Brief scores:
Rest of India 237all out in 68.1 overs (Smaran Ravichandran 68, Shikhar Mohan 60; Sunil Kumar 3-36, Lone Nasir Muzaffar 3-59) lead Jammu & Kashmir 21/2 in 7 overs (Qamran Iqbal 12 not out; Mukesh Choudhary 1-3) by 216 runs