Jammu and Kashmir's batters unleashed a batting masterclass at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium today, sighting big win over Himachal Pradesh to storm into the Ranji Trophy knockouts for the second consecutive season.

Abid Mushtaq and Kanhaiya Wadhawan carved out maiden centuries, mirroring Shubham Pundir's sublime effort, while Yudhvir Singh Charak and Aquib Nabi bludgeoned fifties to amplify the fireworks from Abdul Samad and captain Paras Dogra in an unrelenting assault.

Resuming from an overnight 387 for five, J&K piled on to a monumental 771 all out, seizing a whopping first-innings lead of 603 runs—the highest-ever team total in their Ranji history, eclipsing the previous mark of 624 against Services in 2015-16.

Abid's explosive 177 (207 balls, 18 fours, six sixes) set the tone with ruthless power, complemented by Kanhaiya's gritty 110 (158 balls, seven fours, 1 six). Yudhvir (65) and Aquib(54) piled on the pressure, building on Day two highlights of Pundir's elegant 165, Samad's 61, and Dogra's 54.

Himachal's bowlers fought back valiantly, Rohit D Kumar claiming four wickets, Divesh R Sharma three, and Aryaman two, but couldn't stem the tide.

In their second innings, Himachal staggered to 26 for two, still 577 runs adrift with eight wickets intact and a final day remaining. Mridul Surroch (nine) and Pukhraj Mann (10)resisted at the crease, but seamer Aquib Nabi struck early, dismissing AR Kalsi(two) and Ankush Bains (five).

The team of JKCA Administrators, Brig Anil Gupta and Vidhyaa Bhaskar; CAC Members Abdul Qayoom,Vijay Sharma, and Meenu Singh Slathia; and selectors Sarabjeet Singh, Dhruv Mahajan, and Arshad Bhat deserves appreciations for nurturing this landmark triumph.

"Continuing Day two dominance, J&K batters owned Day three in their final league clash against HP,securing knockouts and shattering our Ranji scoring record. Well done, team.Stay laser-focused: We Can, We Will," tweeted Brig Anil Gupta, JKCA Member-Administration, JKCA.

=====