J&K in command despite Agarwal's fighting ton

Mayank Agarwal stroked an unbeaten 130, his 21st first-class century and the highest individual score in the match so far, but it was Aquib Nabi's spell on Day 3 which proved to be potentially title-defining. The seamer's three-wicket burst left Karnataka reeling at 220 for 5 in response to Jammu & Kashmir's first innings score of 584, placing the hosts in a commanding position in their bid to lift their maiden Ranji Trophy title.

Earlier on Thursday, Jammu & Kashmir added only 57 runs to their overnight score, losing their last four wickets. Prasidh Krishna, operating with the old ball, did the early damage, striking twice in the first half an hour. Overnight batter Abid Mushtaq top-edged a pull to mid on, ending a 78-run seventh-wicket stand. Soon after, Nabi misjudged Prasidh's length, edging to the keeper and handing the pacer a five-wicket haul.

Lotra, however, continued to be a thorn. In the company of Yudhvir Singh Charak, he kept the Karnataka bowlers at bay for nearly 10 more overs. Yudhvir used his power to good effect, clubbing Shreyas Gopal for a six over cow corner before finding a streaky boundary off Vidyadhar Patil. The ninth-wicket pair added 30 more before Lotra fell to a short ball, holing out to long leg.

With just the No. 11 for company, Yudhvir took on the bowlers before getting run out, ensuring Karnataka got to bat in the opening session of Day 3.

KL Rahul and Mayank made a cautious start even as Nabi was impressive with his late movement. J&K's new-ball pair largely operated in tight channels, not allowing the batters to break free. Rahul manufactured a couple of exquisite shots and was quick on the singles, but once he departed, the visitors seized momentum.

Rahul fell just before lunch, trying to play across the line to a delivery from Nabi that straightened after pitching. It took a faint edge to the keeper, with J&K overturning the on-field decision via review.

The game-changing spell came in the second session when, in a period of 12 deliveries, three in-form batters were sent back. Devdutt Padikkal poked at a delivery on off stump, edging to first slip. Nabi then tore through the heart of Karnataka's middle order. Two successive deliveries that moved away slightly cleaned up Karun Nair and had Smaran Ravichandran caught behind—both batters dismissed without scoring, reducing Karnataka to 57 for 4.

With a tall mountain to climb, Karnataka's backs were firmly against the wall, though conditions offered little assistance for the bowlers. Even as Nabi generated some movement, the slow surface didn't allow for much threat.

Mayank and Gopal steadied Karnataka's response with a 105-run stand before Yudhvir returned for another spell and sent Gopal back with a nip-backer that trapped him in front. The batter reviewed unsuccessfully. While J&K were largely impressive with the ball in unhelpful conditions, they overstepped 10 times, including four no-balls from spinners.

Even as the rest of the batters struggled, Mayank looked at ease and in control, especially against the spin duo of Abid Mushtaq and Sahil Lotra. He brought up his century just before Gopal's dismissal and later added another 58 runs with Kruthik Krishna before stumps were taken.

Brief scores: Jammu & Kashmir 584 (Shubham Pundir 121, Yawer Hassan 88; Prasidh Krishna 5-98, Vijaykumar Vyshak 1-75) lead Karnataka 220/5 (Mayank Agarwal 130*; Auquib Nabi 3-32) by 364 runs