The was a lot of anticipation around J&K pacer Auqib Nabi’s debut for DC in IPL 2026, after he was bagged for a staggering 8.4 Cr at last year’s auction. But then, in his debut IPL match, all he could manage was, to bowl two overs for 17 runs. All the hype around him, being the next big thing; DC management and skipper Axar Patel did not find it necessary to finish his quota of overs, in a match where they conceded 212 runs in 20 overs.
Too little to do on IPL debut
But what comes as a surprise, at the end of the innings, where Sanju Samson scored 115 not out off 56 deliveries, that Nabi’s economy rate was only 8.50, the best among all DC bowlers. Out of the 12 ball he bowled, he generally looked on target, was hit for only a couple of boundaries by Samson, while Ruturaj Gaikwad was tentative against the Nabi.
Yes, just two overs in a debut match, as a specialist bowler doesn’t say much, after all the hype surrounding him, but perhaps things could have been different, had been been allowed more opportunities. 4 of his 12 balls were dots as well, which just shows, he can be tricky customer to get runs against.
In a way, his debut was, kind of, overshadowed with the way Samson batted on the day. Perhaps, the thinking by Axar Patel was to not harm his confidence, with ‘Chetta’ in full flow.
Auqib Nabi still a great option for DC
Nabi, of course, can swing it both ways with the red ball, but his T20 numbers are not bad by any stretch of imagination. In 34 T20 matches, he has 43 wickets to his name, where his economy has been only 7.74. With the likes of T Natarajan (13.50), Kuldeep Yadav (12), and Lungi Ngidi (10.20), failing big time, Nabi could perhaps be given a longer role in the matches to follow.
In fact, the J&K player also add a bit of firepower in the lower batting order, having scored a ton in LIST A cricket as well, where his strike-rate is above 110. As for Chennai batting, apart from Samson’s exploits, teenager Ayush Mhatre was excellent as well, and went on to score 59 from 36. Getting a promotion in the batting order, Shivam Dube too scored 20 from 10.
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