Fast bowlers' day in Srinagar as J&K bowl Rest of India out for 237

Fast bowlers had a ball on a lush green surface at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar, picking up ten of the 12 wickets that fell on the opening day of the Irani Cup.

After opting to bowl, J&K found early success when Sanant Sangwan's tentativeness made him feather an edge to the wicketkeeper. But there was a sense that the hosts were letting favourable conditions go to waste. Mir and Sunil took a little time to get their lines right. They kept switching angles every over. Mir's struggle extended to his front foot landing where it shouldn't, bowling three no-balls in his first 19 deliveries. That would be a theme throughout the day. J&K bowled 14 extras, 12 of them front-foot no-balls; Mir bowled seven of them.

Yet when they got their lengths right, the swing and seam movement on offer made it tough for the batters. Like when Nasir struck with his second legal ball - he had started his spell with a no-ball. He got a length ball outside off to rear up while swinging away, and Sudip Kumar Gharami edged it straight to second slip.

Shikhar Mohan, who opened the batting for RoI, was spot-on with his judgement of length for a large part of his innings. He was happy to let the ball come to him and play the waiting game, and yet did not let the scoreboard stall. By the time he reached his half-century in 78 balls, he had hit nine fours. Sunil, though, kept putting pressure on J&K. The left-arm seamer got the ball to move both ways and often had Mohan fishing at deliveries he could have easily left.

At the other end, Sarfaraz, RoI's vice-captain, was a picture of confidence. He seldom poked at deliveries outside off, played as late as he could and had impeccable judgement of deliveries to leave. He hit five fours in his stay and built a 76-run partnership with Mohan, offering the 21-year-old a word of advice whenever he needed it.

Full report to follow…