Ranji Trophy | Not everyone can swing the ball both ways like I do, says Nabi

After taking his third five-wicket haul of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, in the match against Delhi on Saturday, Auqib Nabi said his ability to swing the ball both ways distinguishes him from many others. On day one of the clash at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the J&K spearhead finished with figures of 16-5-35-5. He has now claimed 24 wickets in four Ranji games this season. His 44 scalps in the 2024-25 campaign were the most by a pacer.

Nabi may not be blessed with high pace, but the 29-year-old from Baramulla highlighted his point of difference. “Whatever you have, you should look to make the best of that. Not everyone has the skills I have. I can swing the ball both ways,” he told reporters on Saturday.

To go with it, Nabi has developed the mindset to prise out wickets in this format.

“I have worked on my mindset. On any pitch, irrespective of conditions, you have to be able to bowl at one spot, whether it is inswing or outswing. I’ve instilled that into my mindset. Earlier, I would think a lot about getting wickets. Now, I just look to bowl in the good areas and not think about results,” he explained.

While the outswinger to the right-hander came naturally to Nabi, he added the inswinger to his armoury over time.

“I’ve learnt how to set up batters by playing a lot more. I had to develop the inswinger gradually,” he informed. “If you have both, it is a good skill set to have.”