The Auqib Nabi supremacy: what worked in Ranji — and will it in Tests?

Fast bowling is viscerally raw. It is intense, unfiltered and powerful, and not lone does it registry successful the onlookers’ minds, but it besides evokes heavy emotion.

Yet, for each stump that cartwheels, determination is the beauteous outswinger that kisses the bat and nestles safely successful the wicketkeeper’s gloves. Fast bowling is bold, but besides beautiful.

Top of the charts

No bowler successful caller times has embodied these 2 aspects rather similar Auqib Nabi. As Jammu & Kashmir clinched its maiden Ranji Trophy rubric past week, the 29-year-old from Baramulla finished with a chart-topping 60 wickets astatine an mean of 12.56.

So penetrative was helium that his strike-rate was an astounding 28.43. No bowler with 25 oregon much wickets had a fig little than 30. Nabi besides took a whopping 7 five-wicket hauls, and 4 of those came successful 5 innings crossed the quarterfinals, semifinals and final.

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For each the statistical grandeur, determination is simply a pleasing reticence to everything helium does. His run-up is not fiery; his gait is not express; helium doesn’t look down batters oregon indulge successful analyzable vocabulary adjacent portion speaking astir his expertise. Nabi is some arresting and simple.

But hardly 2 years ago, Nabi was conscionable different bowler successful home cricket. He made his debut successful 2019-20 nether trailblazer Parvez Rasool, playing 7 Ranji matches and claiming 24 wickets arsenic J&K made the quarters for lone the 2nd clip successful history. However, successful the 3 seasons aft that, helium accounted for conscionable 22 scalps.

“I saw him archetypal successful the Buchi Babu Trophy nets successful 2023-24,” P. Krishna Kumar, J&K bowling coach, told The Hindu. “He had a steadfast wrist, which is precise important for a fast-bowler. Only past tin you springiness bully back-spin and merchandise the shot amended due to the fact that the thenar is down the ball.

“But helium was bowling much inswingers. He wouldn’t adjacent vessel astir the instrumentality [stumps] to a left-hander. I asked him why. He said ‘Sir, I don’t person the assurance to vessel the outswinger’. So we practised, had immoderate circumstantial nett sessions, and helium learnt precise rapidly and improved drastically.”

In 2024-25, Nabi claimed 44 wickets arsenic J&K reached the quarters again. But a maiden last-four quality was thwarted by Kerala which secured a constrictive one-run first-innings lead. The title-winning season, thus, seems similar him wreaking vengeance.

“Nabi lands the shot connected the seam, and that is wherefore helium has got truthful galore wickets successful Indian conditions,” Krishna Kumar explained. “And his question is truthful late, and lone 2 oregon 3 inches.

“I’ve been coaching for 20 years and I’ve played for 15 years. But I’ve ne'er seen galore bowlers moving the shot truthful late,” added the erstwhile Rajasthan cricketer, who played 70 First Class matches.

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This reflects successful the mode of Nabi’s dismissals. He bowls a suffocating line, landing the reddish cherry consistently successful that mythical ‘corridor of uncertainty’ to perplex batters. Of his 60 dismissals, 41 were caught behind, bowled oregon lbw.

Not a speedster’s paradise

The conditions nether which Nabi has achieved this is arsenic noteworthy. Though India present boasts of a world-class gait onslaught astatine the planetary level, the home crippled is inactive not a speedster’s paradise. In the all-time top-10 database of wicket-takers successful a Ranji season, determination are conscionable 3 pacers — Jaydev Unadkat, Dodda Ganesh and present Nabi.

Unadkat, successful fact, knows this each excessively well. The Saurashtra stalwart, with 4 Tests caps, holds the grounds for astir wickets successful a Ranji play for a speedster — 67 successful 2019-20.

“It’s not everyone’s cupful of tea,” the left-arm pacer told The Hindu. “The upwind is simply a large challenge. Ranji nowadays is not successful the winters. It starts successful October erstwhile it is 38 degrees successful Rajkot. You person to past the full season, play connected antithetic pitches, instrumentality wickets and triumph games. And successful a state wherever to get an outright result, you ever edifice to turning tracks, being a fast-bowler is hard.”

Unadkat is peculiarly impressed by Nabi’s implicit deficiency of signifier fright. He is besides delighted that Nabi has disproved, yet again, the mentation that rampaging velocity is simply a prerequisite.

“When I was successful the reckoning for the Indian team, each I wanted to bash was marque the champion batters play [the ball] each the time,” Unadkat said. “If I could bash that, I knew I had the skill-set to occupation immoderate batter. I spot that content successful Nabi. He wants to get the champion batters out. Some bowlers get into a ammunition if they’re bowling to bigger names. And if they’re bowling to acceptable batters, the lines could beryllium defensive. But successful him, I consciousness it is ever attacking.”

The precocious concluded play was grounds enough. In an epoch wherever teams bat deep, 43 of Nabi’s 60 wickets were of those successful the top-seven. The Ranji last was the cleanable microcosm — K.L. Rahul and R. Smaran caught behind; Karun Nair bowled; and Mayank Agarwal leg-before.

Unsurprisingly, determination is heightened clamour for Nabi to beryllium included successful the Indian team, but earlier that, helium indispensable negociate the load of expectations successful the upcoming Indian Premier League, aft being bought for an awesome ₹8.4 crore by Delhi Capitals.

“Once helium plays IPL and is tested, determination volition beryllium radical saying ‘he isn’t bully capable for the planetary level, it’s conscionable the domestic’,” Unadkat said. “I anticipation helium has the cognition wherever helium doesn’t attraction astir each those things.

“I was really heartbroken for Anshul Kamboj erstwhile helium played successful England [Manchester, 2025], and radical started judging him aft 1 game. I cognize however hard it is to travel retired of it due to the fact that it took maine 12 years to get different accidental [after Test debut].

“The lone happening that comes to my caput successful bid to excel successful internationals is to beryllium 100% each the time. The level of consistency has to beryllium a small higher than domestic. Skill-wise, I judge helium [Nabi] has immoderate it takes. So don’t truly request to propulsion and bash thing different,” the 34-year-old added.

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Nabi, for now, is sleeping connected a furniture of roses. But Krishna Kumar is assured that helium knows however to grip the thorns too. Nabi, aft all, did not shy distant from travelling each the mode to Bengaluru from northbound Kashmir successful 2019 to play league cricket and support his competitory juices flowing.

Calm, sound, sorted

“He is very, precise calm, and adjacent if helium doesn’t get a wicket successful a session, helium says, ‘Sir nary problem, main apni jagah pe bowling karta rahunga’ [I volition support bowling successful my areas]. Sometimes, the batters volition besides bat good and people runs. So you person to beryllium patient.

“But Nabi knows his strengths. In the [2025] Duleep Trophy, helium got 5 wickets against East Zone, including 4 successful 4 balls. In the 2nd lucifer against South Zone, helium got lone 1 wicket. But determination was nary alteration successful his attitude. He has a precise dependable mind.”