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KL Rahul recieved a peach from Auqib Nabi in Ranji final (PC-x.com)
Jammu & Kashmir are on the front-foot in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2026 final against Karnataka at the Hubli Cricket Ground, Hubli. After posting a herculean total of 584 runs on the board, J&K's find of the season, Auqib Nabi, removed Karnataka opener KL Rahul with an absolute peach on Day 3.
Watch - KLR struggles against his future DC member
The Indian opener got an unplayable scorcher from Auqib Nabi, which shaped inwards before honing away at the last movement, taking a faint outside edge. Initially, the on-field umpire gave KL Rahul not out and the batter refused that he had nicked it, but a confident J&K captain, Paras Dogra, sent it upstairs only to get the first breakthrough.
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The seamer, who has been acquired by Delhi Capitals for IPL 2026, didn’t stop by getting KLR’s number, as he then had two more Karnataka stars, Karun Nair and Smaran Ravichandran, both on naughts, in the same spell. Auqib Nabi, along with Sunil Kumar, has been brilliant with the new ball for the first-time finalists. Kumar removed the man-in-form, Devdutt Padikkal, on 11.
It is worth mentioning that Nabi was the Player of the Match for J&K in the semifinal against West Bengal, where his nine-wicket haul to help his team reach their maiden Ranji Trophy final. Before this game, the 29-year-old took 55 wickets, alongside 243 runs with the bat.
J&K cruise to 584 against Karnataka
Playing their first final, J&K chose to bat first and aimed to bat out the opposition. The Paras Dogra-led side faced a dramatic time during their first innings, as Shubham Pundir slammed a brilliant 121. Meanwhile, as many as six batters notched their respective half-centuries, with Yawer Khan, Abdul Samad, Sahil Lotra, Kanhaiya Wadhawan, and the captain himself scoring fifties each. As a result, J&K posted a mammoth 584/10 after batting 173.1 overs.
For the experienced Karnataka side, renowned players such as Vyshak Vijaykumar, Shreyas Gopal and Vidyadhar Patil failed to leave a mark. Whereas Prasidh Krishna was the only positive for his 5 for 98.
Karnataka to the verge of losing Ranji final!
Karnataka lost four wickets in quick succession as Auqib Nabi went through a rampage, reducing the opposition to 57/4 in 18 overs. But the senior statemen, Mayank Agarwal and Shreyas Gopal, are looking to revive the innings. The celebrated opener is heading towards his fifty, while Gopal is relatively new to the crease.
After 25 overs, Karnataka are 80/4, trailing by 504 runs. As the final has reached its third day, it seems the winner will be picked based on who outscores whom in the first innings.
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.jpg?type=mq "Poor day for SL!")
