India’s premier domestic red-ball tournament, the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 is in the business end as four teams battle it out for a spot in the summit clash. Bengal is taking on Jammu & Kashmir while Karnataka and Uttarkhand are locking horns in the semi-finals.
On that note, let’s take a look at the top performances of the Ranji Trophy semi-finals Day 3.
Despite falling down the pecking order, Mohammed Shami is almost breaking the selectors’ door for a possible comeback to the national Test side with his domestic exploits. Notably, the right-arm pacer had last featured for India during the Champions Trophy 2025 with his final Test match coming during the WTC Final 2023 against Australia.
The veteran speedster headlined Bengal’s bowling attack by taking an eight-wicket haul against J&K. In the process, he registered his career best FC bowling figures of 8/90. Shami’s heroics also helped Bengal take a slender lead of 26 runs by bundling out J&K for 302 in response to Bengal’s first innings total of 328.
Mohammed Shami has been consistent throughout the season and is currently the sixth-highest wicket-taker with 36 scalps from seven games, which includes one four-wicket haul and three fifers. Shami’s sublime form will definitely make a case for him ahead of India’s upcoming Asian Test season which begins with a two-Test tour of Sri Lanka later this year and an extensive five-match series against Australia at home in early 2027.
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The lucrative INR 8.4 crore signing by Delhi Capitals, Auqib Nabi has been enjoying a tremendous domestic season with the ball. After finishing as the second-highest wicket-taker in the previous Ranji season, Nabi is currently leading the wicket-taking charts with 55 wickets in nine games at an impressive average of 12.72.
His latest show comes against Bengal in the semis, where he took a four-wicket haul in the second innings to bundle out Bengal for a trivial 99 after already taking a fifer in the first. Prior to this match, in the quarter-final against Madhya Pradesh, Auqib Nabi had taken a 12-wicket match haul to guide J&K to their maiden Ranji semis appearance and can now play a key role in their first-ever final outing.
The Uttarakhand spinner is the joint leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 alongside Nabi. After a fifer against Jharkhand in the quarters, he continued weaving his magic with a three-wicket haul against Karnataka in the semis.
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