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Mukesh and Smaran guide Rest of India to convincing Irani Trophy win over Jammu & Kashmir

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Rest of India players with the Irani Trophy

Rest of India players with the Irani Trophy (Source: IG/@mukeshkumar3924)

Mr Cricket UAE Staff

Mr Cricket UAE Staff

Published - 04 Oct 2026, 07:47 PM Read time - 2 mins

Mukesh Kumar's sensational six-wicket haul (6/33) propelled Rest of India (RoI) to their first Irani Trophy title in two years as they bundled out Ranji Trophy champions Jammu & Kashmir for just 111 in 28.4 overs, securing a commanding 167-run victory at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar on October 4.

Chasing 279 for a historic first-ever Irani Trophy triumph, the reigning Ranji Trophy champions were blown away by Mukesh's immaculate discipline. Jammu & Kashmir started brightly, with openers Qamran Iqbal (32) and Shubham Khajuria (36) looking eager to score from the outset and capitalising on anything loose. The pair added 54 runs in just 10 overs before Akash Deep struck to shift the momentum.

Deep went wide of the crease and attempted to bring the ball back into Iqbal, who swung hard across the line but missed completely. Trapped plumb in front, Iqbal's dismissal opened the floodgates. Khajuria followed soon after as Deep lured him into a drive outside off stump. Tempted by the width, Khajuria went for an expansive stroke but only managed an edge through to substitute wicketkeeper Aryan Juyal.

Mukesh then ran through the batting order, consistently getting the ball to move both ways from a probing length outside the right-hander's off stump. Apart from Abdul Samad's gritty 20 off 42 balls, none of the Jammu & Kashmir batters offered much resistance. Mukesh cleaned up the tail as J&K's innings lasted just 28.4 overs. Deep finished with impressive figures of 3/25 from nine overs and strengthened his case, alongside Mukesh, for a place in India's Test squad ahead of the New Zealand tour.

Ravichandran Smaran emerged as the standout batter of the match. After scoring a fluent 68 off 83 balls in the first innings, he followed it up with a magnificent century in the second. Player of the Match (POTM) Smaran smashed 135 off just 153 deliveries in a stroke-filled knock that featured 16 fours and five sixes, helping RoI set a challenging target of 279.

The victory marked RoI's 31st Irani Trophy title, with one shared triumph. They had finished runners-up in each of the previous two seasons, losing to Mumbai in 2024-25 and Vidarbha in 2025-26.