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Jammu and Kashmir cricketer Sahil Lotra described the maiden Ranji Trophy title as a "massive achievement" and a "dream fulfilled".
Paras Dogra-led Jammu and Kashmir put an end to their 67-year long wait to lift their first-ever Ranji Trophy title as the final of the 2025-26 season was drawn, and they were declared winners based on the first-inning lead. Sahil Lotra played a crucial hand in J&K's win as he scored 72 in the first innings and then backed it up with an unbeaten 101 in the third innings of the match, helping his team bat the opposition out of the match. Speaking to ANI, Sahil Lotra said, "This is a very special moment for me. It's a massive achievement for the Jammu and Kashmir team to win the Ranji Trophy and fulfil the dream. We had been working hard for four years, and we played cricket for eight straight months this year. Before the Ranii Trophy season, we play the Buchi Babu tournament, which helps our preparations. Our coaches have supported us, too," Lotra said. Lotra credited the success to the team combination and discipline demonstrated during the tournament. "We took it as a normal match, we were not thinking of the opposition. The biggest plus for us was the team combination, team unity and the discipline we showed in this tournament. Everybody knew their roles and executed them well," the J&K cricketer said. Coming to the match, Jammu and Kashmir were crowned champions by virtue of their massive 291-run first-innings lead over the Devdutt Padikkal-led Karnataka. The foundation of J&K's win was laid in the first two days when their batters showed relentless discipline. Led by a masterful 121 from Shubham Pundir and contributions from Yawer Hassan (88 runs), captain Paras Dogra (70 runs), Abdul Samad (61 runs), Kanhaiya Wadhawan (70 runs) and Sahil Lotra (72 runs), J-K amassed a massive first-innings total of 584 runs. Despite J-K's dominance, pacer Prasidh Krishna claimed figures of 5/98 in 34.1 overs, standing out as the lone bowler who impressed for Karnataka. Karnataka, despite boasting a lineup of international stars including KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Devdutt Padikkal, and Karun Nair, crumbled under the pressure of the scoreboard. Only Mayank Agarwal put up significant resistance with a valiant 160, but it was a lone effort. Karnataka were bowled out for 293, conceding a massive 291-run lead to Jammu and Kashmir. The star of the show with the ball was J-K's Auqib Nabi, whose clinical 5/54 in 23 overs decimated the Karnataka middle order and effectively sealed the fate of the match by Day 4. Batting again, J-K were powered by an unbeaten 160 by Qamran Iqbal, as Paras Dogra declared the innings on 342/4 on Day 5, with J-K leading by 633 runs, with both captains choosing to shake hands as the entire J-K squad stormed into the field in celebration. Shubham Pundir won the Player of the Match award, as Auqib Nabi was awarded the Player of the Series award for his 55 wickets in eight matches in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season. (ANI)
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