Ranji Final/ KNTK v { J & K 417/5*( P. Dogra (c) 60*) - Page 2

176/4 still no declaration on day 4

Smaran on 60* (135 in 1st innings) k. Rahul on 24* once again Mayank Agarwal out early for 21

Kruthik Krishna out for 52 while Sreyas Gopal 0 and k. Nair 8.

Kar lead by 679 tomorrow last day

Karnataka v Jammu and Kashmir final on Febuary 24-28, 2026

Smaran (127 - century in both innings) (135 in 1st innings) & rahul (70*) put on 168 in 28 overs

End of Day 4 Karnataka reached 299/6 + 503 = lead 802 but no declaration yet

UTK chasing 827 to UTK UTK 258/6 at close Rawatand Negi both hit unbeaten 50

match draw Karnataka won with 1st innings lead of 503 & enter in Final

KAR : 736 all out ( 1st innings - 194.4 ovs)

K. Rahul 141, Padikkal 232, Karun Nair 60, R. Smaran 135, Kruthik Krishna 60, Extra 36, Vidyadhar Patil 54.

Rahul / padikkal put on 278 for 2nd wicket

Aditya Rawat 4 for 154, M. Mishra 3 for 173 ( 59 wkts in in going season ) Avnish, Lakshya & Abhay n took A wkt each

Uttarakhand :1st innings: 233

Avneesh 27, Lakshy 52, Suchith 21, Aditya Rawat

45 not out

V. Patil 2 for 40, Shreyas Gopal 2 for 41,

Vijay Vyshack 3 for 37, S.Shetty 1 for 39.

Karnataka gained lead of 503

Karnataka 2nd innings : 322 all out

M. Agarwal 21, Kruthik krishna 52, K. Rahul 86 not out, Smaran 127

Mayank Mishra 4 fer ( 63 wkts in season)

Avneesh & Suchit A wkt each, Abhay Negi 2 wkts

UTK need 826 to Qualify for the Final of RT

156/6* ( avneesh 65) since than Negi(57*) & Rawat (55*)push the score of UTK 258/6

Shreyas Gopal 3 fer , Vijaykumar V.1 wkt & Prasiddh Krishna 2/17

Draw

Karnataka advance into Final

Table

Upcoming

Karnataka

J + K

Tomorrow

9:30 AM

Match yet to begin

Final, Hubballi, February 24 - 28, 2026

R Smaran (950 runs in 13 innings at 95.00),

Karun Nair (699 in 12 at 63.54),

Devdutt Padikkal (532 in nine at 66.50)

KL Rahul (457 in six at 91.40)

have been in electric form. Rahul, Smaran and Padikkal all scored heavily in the semi-final as well☘️☘️☘️☘️☘️☘️💋💋🖥️🖥️🖥️🌹🌹🌿🌿

Auqib Nabi has picked up 55 wickets this season at an average of 12.72 • PTI

Big picture - Karnataka start Favorite 💚🌿🌲❤️

More than four months since the opening game of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, two teams stand at the finish line. In one lane are first-timers, Jammu and Kashmir, who have stepped into uncharted territory and defied odds time and again. They are now one step away from a maiden title. In the other are Karnataka, who have been there and done that - made it to the final 14 times and won it eight times.

It's been nothing short of a fairytale season for J&K, who have brushed aside heavyweights including Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Bengal. Their season began with a 35-run defeat to Mumbai, but that has been their only blip. They defeated MP in a close quarter-final by 56 runs before going past Bengal by six wickets despite conceding a first-innings lead.

Karnataka, meanwhile, have survived stutters and would not have been here but for a sensational five-wicket win over Punjab, where they chased 250 in 28 overs in fading Mohali light. Since reaching the knockouts, however, Karnataka have been unstoppable. They beat Mumbai by four wickets in the quarter-finals and amassed 736 and 323 in the two innings of the semi-final. They enter the final as resounding favourites, particularly considering their record against J&K.

The two teams have met four times in the Ranji Trophy and Karnataka have won on each occasion - twice by an innings.

How J&K's fast bowlers fare against Karnataka's batters could well define the final. Auqib Nabi has been the cornerstone of the J&K attack with 💋55 wickets in nine matches, but left-arm quick Sunil Kumar (29 wickets in eight) and left-arm spinner Abid Mushtaq (26 in nine) have also made significant contributions. They will be tested by a Karnataka batting unit that bulldozed Uttarakhand in their semi-final.

Rahul, Smaran and Padikkal all scored heavily in the semi-final as well. Mayank Agarwal, who handed captaincy to Padikkal midway through the tournament, missed out in the semi-final and will be keen to make amends in the final. If the Karnataka top order fires, J&K could be forced to move to plan B very quickly.

In the comfort of their home ground in Hubbali, Karnataka will want to add a ninth title - and a first since 2014-15 - to their rich legacy. Can J&K stop them?

Form guide

Karnataka WWWLW (last five games, most recent first)

J&K WWDDW

In the spotlight - Auqib Nabi, R Smaran and KL Rahul

Auqib Nabi has been one of the stories of the season. He's delivered in every match and is a huge reason behind J&K's run to the final. The fast bowler has picked up 55 wickets in 16 innings this season at an average of 12.72, striking every 28.50 balls. He is second on the wicket-takers' list behind Uttarakhand's Mayank Mishra and will want to finish on top. He claimed nine wickets in the semi-final and 12 against MP in the quarter-final. And don't discount Nabi's batting. He has already made a century this season against Hyderabad and scored a vital 42 in the semi-final against Bengal.

Ravichandran Smaran is on course to reach the 1000-run milestone this season•PTI

R Smaran has been a run machine. In 13 innings this season, he has scored three fifties and four centuries including two double-tons. He is coming off back-to-back centuries against Uttarakhand and appears to be in the form of his life. Smaran also has fond memories of Hubbali, having smashed an unbeaten 227 earlier in the season there against Chandigarh.

KL Rahul has lifted an already formidable Karnataka line-up with his experience. In six innings, he has amassed 457 runs, including two centuries and two fifties. He is coming off scores of 141 and an unbeaten 86 in the semi-final and could pose a major threat to the J&K bowlers if he settles in.

Team news - Devdutt Padikkal fit

Karnataka captain Padikkal did not bat in the second innings of the semi-final after injuring his hand while attempting a catch, and he did not take the field either. But he is expected to be fit for the final. Karnataka are likely to go with the same XI as in their semi-final.

Karnataka (probable): 1 KL Rahul, 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Devdutt Padikkal (capt), 4 Karun Nair, 5 R Smaran, 6 Shreyas Gopal, 7 Kruthik Krishna (wk), 8 Vidyadhar Patil, 9 Vijaykumar Vyshak, 10 Shikhar Shetty, 11 Prasidh Krishna.

J&K fielded the same XI in both their quarter-final and semi-final and are unlikely to tinker with a winning combination.

Jammu and Kashmir (probable): 1 Shubham Khajuria, 2 Yawer Hassan, 3 Shubham Pundir, 4 Paras Dogra (capt), 5 Abdul Samad, 6 Kanhaiya Wadhawan, 7 Abid Mushtaq, 8 Vanshaj Sharma, 9 Auqib Nabi, 10 Yudhvir Singh, 11 Sunil Kumar.

Pitch and conditions

Only one match has been played in Hubbali this season, with Karnataka trouncing Chandigarh by an innings and 185 runs. Temperatures are expected to hover between the late 20s and early 30s, and no rain is forecast across the five days.

Stats and trivia

• ❤️Smaran is 50 away from becoming just the fourth Karnataka batter to breach the 1000-run mark in a single Ranji season after Vijay Bharadwaj (1998-99), Rahul (2013-14) and Agarwal (2017-18).
• ❤️If he gets there, Smaran will be the first batter (Elite group) since Wasim Jaffer in the 2017-18 season to surpass 1000 runs in a season
• ❤️💋Nabi needs just five wickets to go past Uttarakhand's Mayank (59 wkts (i think not up dated yet) ) and become the highest wicket-taker of the 2025-26 Ranji season. The last fast bowler to finish as the highest wicket-taker in a single season was ☘️🖥️Jaydev Unadkat in 2019-20.
• 💚The last team to win their maiden Ranji Trophy title was MP in the 2021-22 season

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Jammu +Kashmir win toss opted batting vs Karnataka

Jammu and Kashmir bats ( Final 1st time)

Early Success for Prasidh krishna as k Rahul took good catch to removed Opener Iqbal 36 ball 6

70/1* after 90 min. Of play.

Pundir on 20* & Y. Hasan on 40* -- 50* partnership (22 ovs Completed)

Sunil joshi 4000 plus runs and 479 wkts for karnataka, couple of other too including Vinay kumar 437 wkts. Bhagvat Chandrashekher 442 wkts for Karnataka

lunch 98/1*

Wow Shubhman Pundir(53*) and Hasan(85*) batted 300 ball as Un known Debutant Jammu and Kashmir Rule the Hubballi Track

Can they go for 500 or 600 by tomorrow?