Auqib Nabi has earned his maiden India Test call-up, drafted in as Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement for the two-match Sri Lanka series starting August 15.
The 29 year old Jammu and Kashmir pacer gets the nod after two outstanding Ranji Trophy seasons, and he becomes only the third cricketer from the union territory to earn a senior India call-up.
Here’s the full story, his numbers, and where he fits into the squad.
Why Bumrah Is Out and Nabi Is In
Jasprit Bumrah is set to miss the Sri Lanka series after failing to recover fully from a knee injury. So, the door has opened for Nabi’s first taste of the senior setup.
The swelling in Bumrah’s knee has lingered longer than expected, and the BCCI’s sports science team at the Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengaluru decided against rushing him back, especially with a packed calendar ahead this year.
A BCCI source told: “Bumrah is not fit and Auqib Nabi has been approved as his replacement.”
Nabi pipped Vidarbha pacer Yash Thakur for the vacant spot. Both were in contention once Bumrah’s participation came under a cloud, but Nabi’s red-ball form over the last two seasons ultimately swung the decision his way.
Who Is Auqib Nabi?
Auqib Nabi Dar, born on November 4, 1996, hails from Sheeri, a small village in Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir. He bowls right-arm medium pace, bats right-handed, and chips in useful runs lower down the order, which is why teammates rate him as a genuine bowling all-rounder rather than a pure specialist.
Cricket circles have nicknamed him the “Baramulla Express,” and the tag fits a career built on grit rather than a shortcut. He was turned away at trials for three straight years before finally cracking the Jammu and Kashmir Under-19 side in 2016, and his first-class debut only arrived in January 2020 against Jharkhand in Ranchi.
The Ranji Trophy Numbers Behind His Rise
Nabi announced himself early, picking up 5 for 39 against Odisha just weeks into his first-class career. But it’s the last two Ranji Trophy seasons that forced selectors to sit up and take notice.
- 2024-25 season: 44 wickets, the second-most in the tournament, at an average of 13.93 and a strike rate of 30.47.
- October 2024: 5 for 29 against Services, a spell that helped bowl the opposition out for just 71.
- 2025-26 season: 60 wickets, the most by any bowler in the tournament, as Jammu and Kashmir won their maiden Ranji Trophy title after a 67 year wait.
- Ranji Trophy final, February 28, 2026: A five wicket haul against Karnataka at the KSCA ground in Hubballi, a spell that also earned him the Player of the Tournament award.
- Duleep Trophy 2025-26: Four wickets in four consecutive balls for North Zone against East Zone, a first in the tournament’s history.
A Big Money Move to Delhi Capitals
Nabi’s domestic form translated straight into an IPL pay day. Delhi Capitals signed him for ₹8.40 crore at the IPL 2026 mini auction, seeing off interest from Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals. It’s the highest fee ever paid for a cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir in the league’s history.
A Historic Moment for Jammu and Kashmir Cricket
Only two other cricketers from Jammu and Kashmir have earned a senior India call-up before Nabi: Parvez Rasool and Umran Malik. Both represented the country only in white-ball cricket, so a Test call-up for Nabi would mark the region’s first taste of the format’s biggest stage.
Why the Selectors Overlooked Him the First Time
Here’s the twist. When the original 15 member squad for this series was picked days earlier, Nabi missed out entirely, despite topping the Ranji Trophy wicket charts.
Off-spinning all-rounder Saransh Jain got the maiden call-up instead, largely as cover for Washington Sundar, who was already unavailable through injury. India’s pace attack, built around Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Gurnoor Brar, was considered settled, so there simply wasn’t room for another quick without dropping an established name.
Analysts also pointed to raw pace as a question mark against Nabi’s case, since his game leans more on swing, seam movement, and control than out and out speed. Bumrah’s injury has now changed the equation entirely.
India’s Full Squad for the Sri Lanka Tests
Shubman Gill continues as Test captain, with KL Rahul as his deputy. Ravindra Jadeja returns after a tennis elbow injury that had kept him out since May, and India go into the series with three spin options in Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, and Saransh Jain, alongside young left-arm spinner Manav Suthar.
| Player | Role |
|---|---|
| Shubman Gill (c) | Batter |
| KL Rahul (vc) | Batter |
| Yashasvi Jaiswal | Opening batter |
| Rishabh Pant | Wicketkeeper-batter |
| Dhruv Jurel | Wicketkeeper-batter |
| Sai Sudharsan* | Batter |
| Devdutt Padikkal | Batter |
| Ravindra Jadeja | All-rounder |
| Saransh Jain | All-rounder |
| Manav Suthar | Spinner |
| Kuldeep Yadav | Spinner |
| Mohammed Siraj | Pacer |
| Prasidh Krishna | Pacer |
| Gurnoor Brar | Pacer |
| Auqib Nabi | Pacer (Bumrah’s replacement) |
*Sai Sudharsan’s availability is still subject to a fitness clearance from the BCCI’s medical team.
Other Selection Headaches India Are Managing
Nabi’s call-up isn’t happening in isolation. India are dealing with a small injury pile-up heading into this tour.
- Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, and Washington Sundar are all out with hamstring issues and will miss at least the series opener.
- Sai Sudharsan is nursing a foot injury picked up during India A’s recent tour of Sri Lanka. He has been batting in the nets at the COE, and a final call on his fitness is expected in the coming days.
The Sri Lanka Series at a Glance
India play a four-day practice match in Colombo from August 7 before the series proper begins. The first Test starts at the Galle International Stadium on August 15, fittingly India’s Independence Day, and runs through August 19.
The second and final Test follows at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo from August 23 to 27, with both matches part of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.
India currently sit fifth in the WTC standings with 52 points from nine games, a win percentage of 48.15, while Sri Lanka are sixth with 20 points from four games.
India’s red-ball form has been patchy of late: a 2-2 draw against England, a clean sweep of West Indies at home, a 2-0 home series loss to South Africa in November 2025, and a win over Afghanistan in a one-off Test last month. Their last Test series win in Sri Lanka came back in 2017, so there’s real incentive to turn things around.
