New Delhi: Md Kounain Quraishi was hardly a familiar name in Indian domestic cricket when he walked out for East Zone in the 2026 Duleep Trophy semifinal. Two matches later, the 23-year-old Jharkhand all-rounder has a first-class century, seven wickets and a Duleep Trophy title to his name.
Quraishi’s latest contribution came on Thursday in Chennai, where he remained unbeaten on 116 against South Zone. His hundred capped a breakthrough tournament in which he played a crucial role in East Zone’s title-winning campaign, despite entering the competition with no previous first-class experience.
Quraishi’s entry into red-ball cricket was anything but conventional. He was drafted into the East Zone squad as an injury replacement for Shahbaz Ahmed ahead of the semifinal against Central Zone.
Most domestic players make their way into the Duleep Trophy after establishing themselves in the Ranji Trophy. Quraishi had not even played a Ranji game for Jharkhand. Instead, his first-class debut came directly in the Duleep Trophy, and he wasted little time making an impression.
In the semifinal, the off-spinning all-rounder picked up three wickets across the two innings. He dismissed Harsh Dubey and Saransh Jain in the first innings before removing Rinku Singh in the second, finishing with figures of 2/49 and 1/14.
Quraishi’s selection did not come entirely out of the blue. Earlier this year, he had produced remarkable numbers for Jamshedpur Steelers in the Jharkhand Premier League.
Used primarily as a finisher, he scored 203 runs in six innings while being dismissed only once. That gave him a remarkable average of 203 and a strike rate of 170. He also contributed six wickets during the tournament as Jamshedpur finished runners-up.
Those performances helped earn him the opportunity to step into a much bigger arena. Quraishi showed his value again in the Duleep Trophy final. He scored 40 in East Zone’s mammoth first innings of 708 and then bowled close to 40 overs, claiming two wickets for 99 runs.
His biggest moment arrived on the final day. Batting in East Zone’s second innings, Quraishi played a composed unbeaten knock of 116 from 190 balls to register his maiden first-class hundred. The innings helped East Zone extend their advantage before they declared at 388/7, securing the title on the basis of a first-innings lead.
Quraishi’s unusual entry into first-class cricket places him alongside a select group of Indian cricketers, including Ravindra Jadeja, Ajinkya Rahane, Piyush Chawla and Bharath Reddy, who played Duleep Trophy cricket before featuring in the Ranji Trophy.
His List A numbers remain modest, 43 runs and three wickets from four matches. But after his extraordinary JPL campaign and statement-making Duleep Trophy run, Quraishi has ensured that his name will no longer be an unfamiliar one in Indian domestic cricket.
(IANS)
