When a team reaches the point of complete dominance, they don’t just wait — they go for the kill — and that’s exactly what Jammu & Kashmir did on the penultimate day against Hyderabad.
Abdul Samad ignited a cold but bright Jammu morning with a composed and responsible century (125, 200b, 10×4, 6×6), helping his side set a mammoth 472-run target, while left-arm spinner Abid Mushtaq’s guile pushed the visitor to the brink at the J&K Sports Hostel and Science College ground in Jammu on Tuesday.
In pursuit, Hyderabad collapsed like a house of cards. The slide began when Mushtaq had opener Abhirath Reddy caught behind. Off-spinner Sahil Lotra then breached the defence of the other opener, Tanmay Agarwal, before Mushtaq dismissed K. Himateja and Nitish Reddy off consecutive deliveries in the 31st over.
Skipper Rahul Singh then fell to Lotra, and Mushtaq soon trapped Tanay Thyagarajan, leaving Hyderabad reeling at 119 for six.
A 42-run seventh-wicket resistance between Anikethreddy and Rahul Radesh pushed the total past 150. But just before Stumps, pacer Auqib Nabi found Radesh’s outside edge, as Hyderabad ended the day at 169 for seven, needing a miracle to survive.
Earlier, resuming with a hefty 324-run lead alongside Kanhaiya Wadhawan, Samad batted with trademark swagger. There were deft cuts, wristy flicks, and a stunning inside-out shot over extra-cover that landed near the handful of fans, bringing up his century in style.
Wadhawan, who played the perfect foil, missed out on a well-deserved century (95, 110b, 11×4, 1×6), undone by a peach from pacer B. Punnaiah. Lotra didn’t last long, falling to Rakshan Readdi, while Samad — looking to accelerate — offered a simple return catch to left-arm spinner Tanay.
Mushtaq found the boundary thrice before being removed by Kartikeya Kak. Nabi launched a couple of lusty blows over deep mid-wicket before falling to Tanay, who also trapped Umar Nazir Mir soon after. Though J&K lost its last six wickets for 104 runs, it set an imposing target.
The scores
Jammu and Kashmir — 1st innings: 170.
Hyderabad — 1st innings: 121.
Jammu and Kashmir — 2nd innings: Qamran Iqbal lbw b Rakshann 50, Shubham Khajuria b Kartikeya 5, Vivrant Sharma c Tanmay b Tanay 45, Paras Dogra b Rakshann 5, Abdul Samad c & b Tanay 125, Kanhaiya Wadhwan b Punnaiah 95, Sahil Lotra b Rakshann 7, Abid Mushtaq lbw b Kartikeya 22, Auqib Nabi lbw b Tanay 27, Umar Nazir lbw b Tanay 9, Sunil Kumar (not out) 9; Extras (w-1, b-20, lb-2) 23; Total (in 100.5 overs): 422.
Fall of wickets: 1-36, 2-81, 3-95, 4-127, 5-318, 6-336, 7-356, 8-387, 9-409.
Hyderabad bowling: Punnaiah 12-2-61-1, Kartikeya 21-2-98-2, Tanay 25.4-4-87-4, Rakshann 23-2-86-3, Aniketh 19-0-66-0, Himateja 1-0-2-0.
Hyderabad — 2nd innings: Tanmay Agarwal b Lotra 47, Abhirath Reddy c Wadhwan b Mushtaq 18, Rahul Singh c Mushtaq b Lotra 30, K. Himateja lbw b Mushtaq 12, Nitish Reddy lbw b Mushtaq 0, Rahul Radesh c Wadhwan b Nabi 20, Tanay Thyagarajann lbw b Mushtaq 0, Aniketh Reddy (batting) 35, Rakshann Readdi (batting) 0; Extras (nb-3, b-4): 7; Total (for seven wkts. In 52.3 overs): 169.
Fall of wickets: 1-58, 2-82, 3-112, 4-112, 5-114, 6-119, 7-161.
Jammu and Kashmir bowling: Nabi 7.3-4-15-1, Nazir 9-3-31-0, Sunil 9-1-31-0, Mushtaq 16-2-56-4, Lotra 10-2-28-2, Samad 1-0-4-0.
Published on Nov 18, 2025