NIT Cricket tourney underway

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

SRINAGAR, July 5: Hosts NIT Srinagar registered a commanding 220-run victory over NIT Agartala in the ongoing Inter-NIT Faculty & Staff Cricket Tournament (M) 2026 at Kashmir University Ground today.

Batting first, NIT Srinagar posted a massive 279/3 in 20 overs, powered by Aaqib Sheikh's blistering 154 off 57 balls-his second century of the tournament-featuring 18 fours and nine sixes. Captain Faisal Irshad contributed 75 off 46 balls, while Sohail Baba added an unbeaten 30 off 12 deliveries. In reply, NIT Agartala were bundled out for just 59 in 17.3 overs. Dr Mohsin led the bowling attack with 3/8, while Dr. Shakeel Waseem and Shahid Hamid took two wickets each.

In another match, NIT Jalandhar crushed NIT Goa by 195 runs after scoring 269/7, with Ravinder (85) and Saurabh Dinkar (68) starring, before Goa were dismissed for 74. NIT Hamirpur defeated SVNIT Surat by 171 runs, posting 225/6 with contributions from Vivek Tiwari, Aman Kumar and Surender Soni.

NIT Puducherry beat NIT Raipur by seven wickets, while NIT Silchar overcame NIT Nagaland by 28 runs. NIT Kurukshetra edged NIT Uttarakhand by 15 runs, NIT Rourkela defeated NIT Jamshedpur by 26 runs and NIT Calicut registered a 39-run win over MNIT Jaipur.

The five-day championship, featuring 24 NIT teams, continues to witness high-scoring matches, disciplined bowling performances, and strong competition across venues.