Jammu and Kashmir created history on Saturday as they stunned Karnataka to claim the Ranji Trophy for the first time ever. As expected, fast bowler Auqib Nabi left a deep impression on the match. His five-for in Karnataka’s only innings included the wickets of seasoned players like KL Rahul, Karun Nair and Mayank Agarwal.
Nabi had been a threat all through the season. With 60 wickets, he is the season’s highest wicket-taker. An average of 12.56 and strike rate of 28.43 speak of his dominance this season.
For the last few weeks, many former players have been clamouring for Nabi’s inclusion in the Indian Test team. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly also wrote his endorsement of the fast bowler on X. On Saturday, at the Hubballi cricket ground, there were a couple of Jammu and Kashmir supporters who held up very interesting placards.
“Tested enough, now give him the Test cap,” read one.
“Crown of India, King of Ranji now,” read the other referencing the J&K team.
Losing Qamran Iqbal early in the first innings was probably the only hiccup for them. Thereafter they put their foot down and scored a mammoth 584. Nabi then took a five-for as Karnataka could only score 293 in familiar conditions. After which it was only a matter of time before J&K created history.
J&K decided not to enforce the follow on and scored 342/4 in their second innings, thanks to a 161 not out from Iqbal, when both the captains decided to shake hands on a draw, after which the visitors claimed the contest on the basis of their mammoth first-innings lead.
J&K captain Paras Dogra, who during the course of the season became only the second player to score 10,000 Ranji Trophy runs, was speechless after the match got over. “I can’t explain, don’t have any words. It’s the biggest thing in our lives. Even when I pass away from this world. Biggest to date. I am lucky to be with the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association. All 14-15 guys have been tremendous, not just the players in the XI. They were keen to win matches right from the beginning,” he said.
It’s not an overnight success, says BCCI president Mithun Manhas
BCCI president Mithun Manhas was also at the venue to see J&K’s historic win. For four years, Manhas led a BCCI-appointed sub-committee overseeing J&K’s cricket. He also held the role of Director of Cricket Operations at the JKCA.
“It’s been an amazing journey that started five years ago. I want to thank the BCCI for the support, especially Jay Shah [former BCCI secretary]. I am a person of process. You need to have your seniors around, with Paras coming in, we got stability, the calmness. With Ajay Sharma Bhai [coach], he has the experience of playing five finals and he brought in immense batting experience from his day. This win is dedicated to all the people back home. All the other teams, they will take a lot of inspiration from this. They can also do what J&K have done,” he said.
