SRINAGAR: At 3 pm on February 23, Qamran Iqbal was resting at his Srinagar home, not even part of Jammu and Kashmir’s original squad for the Ranji Trophy final. By 9 am the next morning, he was walking out to bat in Hubballi. Forty-eight hours later, he had written himself into JK cricket folklore.
Flown in at a moment’s notice to replace the injured Shubham Khajuria, the stylish right-handed opener smashed a career-defining 160 not out in the second innings of the final against Karnataka, guiding Jammu and Kashmir to their maiden Ranji Trophy title on the basis of a decisive first-innings lead.
“Shubham Khajuria was injured and I got a call from the team management. I took an evening flight and reached here at 8 in the morning,” Iqbal recalled, while talking to reporters, describing the whirlwind journey that took him from standby to centre stage.
The fatigue of travel showed in the first innings, where he managed just six runs. But in the second essay, under the weight of expectation and with Karnataka pressing for breakthroughs, Iqbal responded with a knock of rare composure. His unbeaten 160 off 266 balls shut the door firmly on Karnataka’s hopes of a ninth title, allowing the two captains to eventually shake hands with JK assured of the championship.
“It was both confidence and tactics because it was a new ball on day one,” he said of his approach, emphasising preparation and clarity over circumstance.
Born in 2001, Iqbal has steadily grown into one of JK’s most dependable young batsmen. A product of the region’s age-group system, he represented India Under-19 in 2018 and 2019, experiences that sharpened both his temperament and technique. He made his first-class debut in the 2018–19 season and has since become a mainstay at the top of the order across formats, featuring in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
His first-class record now stands at 747 runs in 14 matches at an average above 31, including an unbeaten 133 and six fifties. In List A cricket, he has scored 663 runs in 20 matches at nearly 37, with a century and six half-centuries. In T20s, he has compiled 617 runs in 25 matches at a strike rate exceeding 120, underlining his adaptability across formats.
His defining breakthrough before the final came in the 2025–26 Elite Group clash against Delhi at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, where he struck an unbeaten 133 while chasing 179, scripting JK’s first-ever outright win over Delhi. That innings signalled a side shedding past limitations; the 160* in the final confirmed their arrival.
A right-handed opener known for balance and discipline, Iqbal plays late, leaves judiciously outside off stump and constructs innings methodically. Yet he can accelerate when required, rotating strike and punishing loose deliveries. His calmness under pressure—evident again in the final—has quickly become a defining trait.
He was quick to credit the ecosystem behind the triumph. “Congrats to JKCA. I will start with the JKCA administration. Mithun sir was also there, Ajay sir, and Majid sir. We went through a lot of practice in the pre-season, and we were sent outside to play. Rajesh sir is so focused on the team and doesn’t take anything lightly. This is a result of that,” he said.
Iqbal also acknowledged the influence of senior players. “Senior players like Paras and Shubham keep the team environment great. Aqib is bowling express pace. Everyone has put in their efforts for the team, and everyone has contributed.
For now, the focus remains simple. “Today, we will celebrate and then let’s see what happens in the future,” he said, resisting any temptation to look too far ahead.
Still in his early twenties, Qamran Iqbal is no longer merely a promising prospect. With a maiden first-class century against Delhi and a defining 160* in a Ranji Trophy final, he has demonstrated temperament, technique and timing on the biggest domestic stage. If his trajectory continues, discussions around his future may soon shift from potential to inevitability.
