‘He was the first one who told me to work on my wrist’ - Auqib Nabi credits Irfan Pathan for his rise

Jammu and Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi shared insights from his conversations with former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, whose guidance he continues to value deeply. Nabi has picked up right where he left off last year, having claimed 17 wickets, including two five-wicket hauls, in the 2025-26 season so far.

The Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) continued to back him even when results did not immediately go his way. During his stint as player-cum-mentor with J&K, Pathan had written to the JKCA, urging them to invest in Nabi’s development, a move that now seems to be paying off.

“When I started bowling, I used to bowl outswing. Then I thought I needed to work on inswing as well. While doing so, I lost my outswing but my inswing improved. After a couple more seasons, I thought aisa nahi chalega (it can’t go like this). I needed to move the ball both ways. I started working on my wrist position and on what length to hit. To be honest, I’ve kept things simple for the past 1-2 years. Now, I have good control over both swings. That’s why I’m getting more wickets,” said Nabi as quoted by Times of India.

“When I started playing age-group cricket, we never had bowling coaches. Even growing up, I never had anyone to teach me. When I made my Ranji Trophy debut, we had Irfan Pathan with us. He gave me a lot of useful tips related to bowling. He was the first one who told me to work on my wrist and not change anything. After he left, we didn’t have any bowling coach. We were on our own. For the past two years, we’ve had P. Krishna Kumar as our bowling coach. After he came, I got a lot of help, and it’s showing in my bowling,” he added.

Speaking about his current campaign, Nabi has already claimed several high-profile scalps, including Ajinkya Rahane, Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan (twice), and centurion Siddhesh Lad. Against Rajasthan, he produced a devastating spell, taking 7 for 24 in the second innings to complete a ten-wicket match haul. His fiery opening burst saw him dismiss Rajasthan’s entire top six.