Jammu and Kashmir have created history by defeating Delhi for the first time in Ranji Trophy cricket, winning by seven wickets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Tuesday in their 43rd meeting with the traditional powerhouse. The victory, sealed on the fourth and final day, ended a wait of 57 years and marked a watershed moment for cricket in the region.
Chasing 179 for victory, Jammu and Kashmir resumed the final morning on 55 for 2, needing 124 more runs. Opener Qamran Iqbal, calm and composed at the crease, played the innings of his career, remaining unbeaten on 133 off 147 balls, with 20 fours and three sixes, to steer his side to 179 for 3 in 43.3 overs. It was his career-best knock, and it dwarfed the next best contribution of the innings, an unbeaten 10 from captain Paras Dogra.
The match had been built on a series of commanding performances spread across four gripping days. Jammu and Kashmir chose to field first after winning the toss, and their bowlers tore through the Delhi batting line-up, with Auqib Nabi taking 5 for 35, supported by Vanshaj Sharma and Abid Mushtaq, to bowl Delhi out for 211 in the first innings. In reply, Jammu and Kashmir posted 310, built on Dogra's 106 and Abdul Samad's 85, to claim a substantial 99-run lead.
Delhi fought back in their second innings, with Ayush Badoni scoring 72 and Ayush Doseja 62, but Vanshaj Sharma's six for 68 restricted them to 277, leaving a target of 179. That was a tricky total on a wearing pitch, but Iqbal's masterclass made it look comfortable, and Jammu and Kashmir sealed the win with more than a session to spare.
The result is significant because of the history between the two sides. Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir have faced each other 43 times since 1960, with Delhi winning outright in 37 of those encounters, drawing four and leaving one unfinished. Delhi have long been one of Indian domestic cricket's dominant forces, while Jammu and Kashmir have spent most of their history as outsiders, fighting for respect in the country's premier first-class competition.
That context explains why the win has been hailed as a landmark in the region. "The victory achieved against a strong Delhi lineup at their home ground has been hailed as a watershed moment for J&K cricket," the Greater Kashmir newspaper reported, noting that the triumph was built on disciplined bowling, determined batting and a match-winning century from a young opener. The Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association said the win showed the growing stature of the team in India's domestic circuit.
The victory was Jammu and Kashmir's second outright triumph of the season, and it propelled them to second place in the Elite Group D points table with 14 points, just three behind leaders Mumbai. Delhi, meanwhile, remain fifth in the table with just seven points after four matches, and their campaign is now in serious trouble. Auqib Nabi, who took five wickets in the match, was named player of the match.
For Iqbal, the unbeaten 133 will be remembered as one of the finest knocks in Jammu and Kashmir's first-class history. The 147-ball innings, which mixed careful defence with 23 boundaries, was a statement of self-belief and calm under pressure, and it came on the biggest stage of his young career, against a Delhi attack at their home ground. His captain, Dogra, who had himself scored a century in the first innings, was at the other end when the winning runs were hit.
The win also reflects the steady rise of cricket in Jammu and Kashmir in recent years, driven by better facilities, a more professional domestic structure and a generation of players who have come through the age-group system. The region's team has become increasingly competitive, and Tuesday's result is the clearest evidence yet that it can now beat the best sides in the country on their own turf.
Jammu and Kashmir will next face Hyderabad in their round five fixture at the Hostel Ground, and they will go into that game with confidence soaring and a place in the knockout stages firmly in their sights. For Delhi, the inquest will begin immediately: a team that has dominated this fixture for six decades has been beaten at home by a side it had never lost to, and the manner of the defeat — a seven-wicket loss after taking a first-innings lead — will sting. For Jammu and Kashmir, though, the day belongs to Iqbal and his team-mates, and to a 57-year wait that is finally over.
