Picture Credit: X

Picture Credit: X

The South African pacer Lungisani Ngidi had praised his fellow teammate Auqib Nabi for his breakthrough into the starting squad. Ngidi praised the efficiency of the system as Auqib Nabi is a player, who rose through the domestic ranks with some stellar performances throughout. He was one of the prominent names amongst the uncapped players in the IPL 2026 auction.

The Delhi Capitals had picked up the Jammu & Kashmir pacer for his brilliant display of bowling in the domestic circuit. He was picked up for INR 8.40 Crore by the Delhi Capitals and this signing was a true “system breakthrough” story.

Delhi Capitals pacer earns praise for rising through domestic ranks and showcasing all-round brilliance

"I wanted to meet this guy because he's the hot topic right now within Indian cricket. I'm not talking about the internationals, as the guys are always in the news. Like you always see them and that's fine, but it's the guys that are playing Ranji Trophy and all that stuff where those obviously tournaments give them an opportunity to break through into IPLs and into the Indian team. 

Auqib Nabi is a brilliant seamer who hails from Jammu & Kashmir and he has been one of the most integral players in their setup. He captained the Jammu & Kashmir to their first ever Ranji Trophy title in the 2025-26 season. He finished as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 60 wickets and he was also named the “ Player of the Series”. He grabbed the headlines by taking four wickets in four balls in a Duleep Trophy match. His bowling abilities attracted attention from the cricketing world as he was even nicknamed as the “ Baramulla Express”.

"So for me to hear that he had done so well over the last season, I wanted to meet him. Then when I met him, I realised how skilful a cricketer he is. We were speaking about it now being able to hit the top of off-stump, but he can swing the ball both ways. He can land a yorker, bowls at a good pace and he can hit the ball with the bat as well,” said Ngidi.

In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Auqib Nabi smashed a sensational century scoring 114 off just 82 balls, coming in at number 8 and he helped his team recover from 90/7 to a record breaking partnership. Auqib Nabi is a very skilled player with both bat and ball, proving his worth in the domestic circuit. He was a top target for many of the franchises going into the IPL auction and there was a heated bidding war to decide who will acquire the Jammu & Kashmir speedster.

With plenty of matches to go in the IPL 2026 season for the Delhi Capitals, Auqib Nabi will be looking to perform well to cement his spot in the side. He has got the right skill set and mindset to perform well in the IPL, but at the end of the day, it’s all about holding your nerve under pressure.