Auqib Nabi gets one step closer to maiden India call-up
Auqib Nabi Dar (Source: Getty Images)
Published - 02 Jun 2026, 01:10 PM• Read time - 2 mins
After the disappointment of not being named in India's squad for the one-off Test against Afghanistan, there's finally something to cheer for Auqib Nabi as the speedster has been handpicked as one of the seven net bowlers to help India prepare for the contest.
Lucknow Super Giants' pacer Prince Yadav and Chennai Super Kings' left-arm seamer Gurjapneet Singh are the other two pacers, whereas Zeeshan Ansari, Shivang Kumar and Saransh Jain are the high-profile spinners tasked to give India's Test batters the ideal prep for the inconsequential game.
Nabi, 29, had made a really strong case for himself before the selectors sat down to pick the team for the Afghanistan Test. The right-arm speedster bagged a total of 60 wickets during the course of the Ranji Trophy 2025/26 season, at a mind-blowing average of 12.56, including two four-fors and seven five-wicket hauls.
He was adjudged the Player of the Series as he guided Jammu & Kashmir to their maiden Ranji Trophy title after being adjudged winners based on first innings lead against Karnataka in the final in Hubballi.
Nabi was hard done by after the selectors picked Punjab's right-arm fast bowler Gurnoor Brar based on the promise he displayed in his domestic returns.
"You do not necessarily pick a lot of seamers when you pick a Test team in India," chief selector Ajit Agarkar said at the time of the squad announcement. "And he was close. But at this point, we have gone with the three that we have picked."
Meanwhile, Prince was rewarded for his incredible performance for Delhi in the 2025/26 Vijay Hazare Trophy. The right-arm medium pacer has been named in India's three-match ODI series against Afghanistan as a result of claiming 18 wickets in eight games during the Vijay Hazare Trophy at an average of 19.27. He was Delhi's leading wicket-taker in the tournament and backed it up with a remarkable display in IPL 2026.
Prince finished as the leading wicket-taker for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) with 16 wickets in 14 games at an economy rate of 8.82.
