Irani Cup: Mukesh and Akash blow away J&K as RoI triumphs
Rest of India defeated Jammu & Kashmir by 167 runs to win the Irani Cup, led by a dominant bowling performance from Mukesh Kumar and Akash Deep. The pacers took a combined nine wickets to dismantle the J&K batting lineup on the final day.
Why it matters
The match highlights the performance of emerging Indian cricket talent and the competitive nature of domestic Indian cricket tournaments.
Mukesh Kumar and Akash Deep have multiple threads tying them together. Both pacers hail from mofussil towns in Bihar. Both relocated to West Bengal to pursue cricket. Both have donned the whites for India.
Their bonhomie with the ball in hand has given Bengal many victories in the Ranji Trophy. At the picturesque Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium on Sunday, the two quicks again combined to devastating effect to help Rest of India clinch a 167-run victory over Jammu & Kashmir on day four and win the Irani Cup. While the 32-year-old Mukesh took six for 33, Akash, 29, finished with figures of three for 25. J&K’s run chase of 279 was derailed altogether as the 2025-26 Ranji champion folded up for 111.
Also covering this story
One other newsroom covered this event. We read that version too.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in