Umran Malik and Auqib Nabi delivered contrasting performances in the 1st innings of Jammu and Kashmir’s round 2 Ranji Trophy 2025/26 tie against Rajasthan. The former, who made his return to domestic red-ball cricket after missing the entire season in the previous year, went wicketless, much to his dismay. On the other hand, the consistent Nabi once again displayed his all-round prowess, impressing with both bat and ball against RAJ.
Malik flops, Nabi reigns supreme in J&K vs RAJ
Malik, who made his comeback in the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament, did not have a great outing in the 1st innings against Rajasthan. He bowled just 8 overs in which he conceded 26 runs while Yudhvir Singh, Nabi and Sunil Kumar bowled over 10 overs each.
The underutilization of the former SRH pacer casts aspersions on his fitness and if the team believes he could bowl full-fledged although the bowler claims that he can do so.
Meanwhile, Nabi impressed with a 3/29 spell followed by a 55-run knock. His all-round prowess helped J&K bowl out Rajasthan for 152 runs in the 1st innings and post 282 runs with the bat. He got rid of RAJ opener Sumit Godara for a golden duck in the 2nd innings. The all-rounder has been in great form, having scored 21 and 37* runs in the previous game and having registered figures of 7/106 across 2 innings in the game against Mumbai.
In Ranji Trophy 2024/25, Nabi finished as the second highest wicket-taker, with 44 scalps to his name from 8 matches, averaging 13.93. He was picked as a part of North Zone’s squad for Duleep Trophy 2025 where he scored 54 runs and picked 6 wickets in 2 matches. However, despite his consistency, he is yet to rewarded with a spot in India A squad and has been left out of the side for the series against South Africa A as well.
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