There will be expectations, but I am focusing on my work

For the best part of two years now, Jammu & Kashmir’s Auqib Nabi has compelled the domestic cricket landscape in India to take notice of his talent with eye-popping exploits in the First Class circuit. Thrust a new red ball into his right hand and Nabi, shy and reticent otherwise, invariably makes it talk, luring seasoned batters into his trap with subtle changes in his wrist position. For evidence, look no further than his dismissals of K.L. Rahul and Karun Nair in Karnataka’s first innings of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy final.

It is owing to this precious skill that Nabi has been at the vanguard of J&K’s headline-grabbing performances recently. In an epochal 2025-26 Ranji season that witnessed the northern side break free from the shackles of history and lift the crown for the first time, Nabi’s display — he effected 60 dismissals in 10 matches — was the piece de resistance. The medium-pacer pacer from Baramulla was no less influential in the preceding season, claiming 44 wickets in J&K’s run to the quarters — it was a one-run first-innings deficit against Kerala that agonisingly hindered the Paras Dogra-led outfit from marching ahead. As irresistible as Nabi has been in India’s premier First Class competition, it is a sign of the times that a broader endorsement of his ability will readily come if he can cut it in the Indian Premier League over the next two months. His style may not be as suitable to the white-ball game, but he did scalp 15 wickets in seven games for J&K in the last Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy — the domestic T20 meet —at a creditable economy rate of 7.41 runs per over.