Borrowed boots, unbreakable dream

Auqib Nabi yesterday became the first cricketer from Jammu & Kashmir to be named in the India Test squad when he was called up for the upcoming two-match series against Sri Lanka. The first Test begins in Galle on August 15. 

But before he could even dream of wearing the India jersey, Auqib Nabi had to borrow a pair of boots just to take part in the Under-19 trials. The first pair did not last long, as the friend who had lent them failed to make the squad and took them back. Left with no choice, Nabi borrowed another pair from someone else and completed his maiden Under-19 tournament in patched-up boots.

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Nabi, hailing from Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir, always knew adversity would be part of the journey. But if he wanted to play for India, he believed excuses had no place.

The son of government schoolteachers, Nabi's cricketing journey began with tennis-ball cricket. However, when he switched to the hard-ball game, Baramulla's underdeveloped cricketing infrastructure became a major obstacle. Opportunities to train on turf wickets wearing spikes were almost non-existent. Yet Nabi refused to be discouraged. 

Rather than complain about the lack of facilities, he travelled one and a half hours every morning to Srinagar for training, driven by a simple belief: if you dream of playing for the national team, you have to stop making excuses.

The turning point came in 2023 when he began working with Jammu and Kashmir bowling coach P Krishnakumar during the Buchi Babu Trophy. Although he already possessed an effective outswinger, subtle adjustments to his bowling biomechanics soon helped him develop a sharp inswinger and master the scrambled seam. Combined with an excellent wrist position and an impressive ability to read match situations, those additions quickly made him a far more complete fast bowler.

The real transformation, however, was mental as much as technical. Rather than obsess over taking wickets, Nabi learned the value of relentless consistency. Whether the ball was new or old, whether the pitch offered assistance or none at all, he focused on hitting the right areas repeatedly and building pressure on batters.

The rewards followed swiftly. Across two successive Ranji Trophy seasons, he claimed 104 wickets, playing a key role in Jammu and Kashmir's historic Ranji Trophy triumph. His outstanding domestic performances earned him an India A call-up, and after taking six wickets in two first-class matches on the tour of Sri Lanka, he finally realised his ultimate ambition with a maiden call-up to India's Test squad.

For a journey that began in borrowed boots, every step has been built on resilience and determination. Today, the pace sensation from Baramulla stands on the threshold of Test cricket, carrying not only his own dreams but also the hopes of an entire region.