Srinagar, July 6: On Day 3 of the All India Inter-NIT Faculty & Staff Cricket Tournament 2026, being hosted by NIT Srinagar, the tournament entered the knockout stage with hosts NIT Srinagar, NIT Jalandhar and NIT Hamirpur registering impressive quarter-final victories to book their places in the semi-finals.
Earlier in the day, the final round of league-stage matches produced several thrilling contests as teams battled for crucial points.
Hosts NIT Srinagar continued their unbeaten run with a dominant seven-wicket victory over NIT Kurukshetra in the quarter-final at the NIT Srinagar Ground.
Batting first, NIT Kurukshetra posted 123 runs for the loss of 7 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Despite a disciplined effort from their batting unit, they struggled to accelerate against a well-organised NIT Srinagar bowling attack.
Prof. Vikas Kumar was the top scorer with 22 runs, while the hosts maintained tight lines and picked up wickets at regular intervals to keep the visitors under pressure throughout the innings.
NIT Srinagar’s bowlers shared the responsibility impressively, with Dr. Shakeel Waseem leading the attack by claiming 2 wickets for 25 runs in his four overs. He received excellent support from Dr. Mohsin (1/18), Dr. Majid Hussain (1/17), Mudasir Qadir (1/25) and Shahid Hamid (1/19), as each contributed a wicket to restrict Kurukshetra to a modest total.
In reply, NIT Srinagar produced another commanding batting display, chasing down the target with ease. The hosts reached 127/3 in just 14 overs, completing the chase with six overs to spare. Dr. Ved Prakash anchored the innings with an unbeaten 50, while Aaqib Sheikh played an aggressive knock of 38 runs.
Dr. Pankaj Kumar chipped in with a brisk 16 off 9 balls, and Shahid Hamid remained unbeaten on 11 off just 4 deliveries, as NIT Srinagar comfortably chased down the target to seal an emphatic eight-wicket victory and book their place in the semi-finals.
Dr. Ved Prakash was declared the Player of the Match for his half-century. The award was presented by Registrar NIT Srinagar Prof. Atikur Rehman, who felicitated him with a memento.
At Ganderbal Physical College, NIT Jalandhar edged past NIT Rourkela by eight runs in one of the most exciting quarter-finals of the tournament.
Jalandhar posted 157/6 after valuable contributions from Ravinder (38) and Nitin Sharma (32). In reply, Subrat S fought brilliantly with 82 off 67 balls, but Rourkela finished on 149/6 despite his heroic effort. Manjeet Singh claimed 2/22 for Jalandhar, while Subrat S was named Player of the Match for his outstanding knock.
Meanwhile, NIT Hamirpur defeated NIT Calicut by 32 runs to advance to the semi-finals. Hamirpur were bowled out for 107 despite Manish scoring 34 and Aman Kumar adding 22. Dhanesh Rambeth starred for Calicut with an excellent five-wicket haul.
However, Hamirpur’s bowlers responded brilliantly as they dismissed Calicut for 75 in 17.1 overs. Manish completed a memorable all-round performance by taking 5/21, while Surender Soni supported him with 3/10 to seal a comprehensive victory.
Earlier, the league stage concluded with several entertaining contests across different venues.
MNIT Jaipur produced the highest total of the day, crushing NIT Delhi Faculty & Staff by 99 runs. After piling up 228/8, powered by Sundeep Kumar’s 58 and Roop Narayan Sharma’s explosive 44 off 18 balls, Jaipur bundled out Delhi for 129 despite Manoj Kumawat’s fighting 69. Vijay Singh claimed 3/24 to lead the bowling attack.
MANIT Bhopal defeated NIT Raipur by 24 runs after posting 140/8 in 18 overs. Hasthi Venkateswarlu impressed with both bat and ball, scoring 35 before returning figures of 3/20. Deepak Singh’s 37 was not enough to prevent Raipur from finishing on 116/8.
NIT Kurukshetra also registered a 17-run league victory over NIT Andhra Pradesh. Kamlesh Choudhary anchored the innings with a fluent 61 before making a useful contribution with the ball, while Rahul Sharma stole the show with a hat-trick, finishing with impressive figures of 3/13, as Andhra Pradesh were restricted to 126/8.
NIT Agartala registered a five-wicket victory over NIT Manipur. Manipur posted 127/8, with Nabajit Sarkar scoring 37, while Amitesh Bardhan starred with the ball, taking 4/17. Agartala chased the target in 19.1 overs thanks to Dhirendra Kumar Pandey’s composed 42.
NIT Rourkela bounced back from their quarter-final disappointment with a convincing five-wicket league win over MNNIT Allahabad. Tanmaya Kumar Sahoo ripped through the batting order with sensational figures of 6/17 as Allahabad were restricted to just 73/9. Rourkela comfortably chased the target in 12.2 overs.
VNIT Nagpur defeated NIT Nagaland by 11 runs in a closely fought encounter. Sourav Pradhan scored 33 as VNIT posted 159/9, while Dr. Ajit Rathod’s disciplined spell of 2/28 proved decisive as Nagaland finished on 148/4 despite useful contributions from Bikash Sarma and Manoj Kumar Patel.
SVNIT Surat secured a comfortable 23-run victory over NIT Sikkim after Vishal’s all-round brilliance. Vishal scored 49 before claiming 2/22, while Dr. Jogender Singh bowled economically to restrict Sikkim to 136/6 in reply to Surat’s 159/7.
In another one-sided contest, NITK Surathkal hammered NIT Goa by ten wickets. After bowling Goa out for 106/8 through outstanding spells from Shailendra (4/18) and Santhosh (3/17), Surathkal chased the target in only 8.3 overs without losing a wicket, with Selva smashing an unbeaten 50 and Santhosh remaining not out on 30.
