Auqib Nabi signs for Surrey for county in preparation for New Zealand tour

Auqib Nabi will play in the county championship for Surrey as part of his preparations for the upcoming tour of New Zealand, according to a PTI report. Nabi will play three games for Surrey in the Championship, starting with the game against Yorkshire at The Oval, starting on September 2.

This will be followed by games against Sussex starting on 8th September, before ending his tenure with a game against Glamorgan on 15th September.

After that, Nabi will join the India A team in Puducherry for the unofficial Tests against Australia A. On Saturday 29 August, it was announced that in view of India’s upcoming Test tour of New Zealand, the BCCI exploring opportunities to provide Nabi with valuable experience in English settings. The board believes that it is negotiating with several regional parties about the possibility of securing him a short-term engagement for the final rounds of the district championship.

Nabi’s rise over the past year has been nothing short of remarkable. He played a key role in Jammu and Kashmir’s maiden Ranji Trophy triumph in March, ending the campaign as the competition’s leading wicket-taker with 60 scalps. His contributions included five wickets in the final, while his list of victims featured prominent names like KL Rahul, Karun Nair and R Smaran, who topped the season’s run charts with 950 runs.

The following month brought another major milestone as Nabi finally made his IPL debut after going unsold in previous auctions. Delhi Capitals secured his services for INR 8.4 crore but his five appearances proved to be tough as he finished wicketless and conceded runs at an economy rate of 11.46.

Nabi was a late call-up to the Indian team for the tour of Sri Lanka but did not play a single match.

Surrey, meanwhile, have increasingly turned to Indian talent in recent seasons. Sai Sudharsan enjoyed two short spells with the county in 2023 and 2024, while Rajasthan batsman Mahipal Lomror was signed earlier this month on a six-match stint. Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar is also currently on Surrey’s books.

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Published on:

30 Aug 2026 17:03 IST