Auqib Nabi signs with Surrey for county stint as part of New Zealand tour preparation

Auqib Nabi will be playing in the county championship for Surrey as part of his preparations for the upcoming New Zealand tour, according to a report from PTI. Nabi will play three matches for Surrey in the championship, starting with their match against Yorkshire at the Oval, starting on September 2.

This will be followed by games against Sussex, which will begin on September 8 and then end his stint with the match against Glamorgan on September 15.

After that, Nabi will link up with the India A team in Puducherry for unofficial Tests against Australia A. It was reported on Saturday, August 29 that with India's upcoming Test tour of New Zealand in mind, the BCCI was exploring opportunities to give Nabi valuable experience in English conditions. The board is understood to be in discussions with several county sides over the possibility of securing him a short-term stint for the closing rounds of the County Championship.

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

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

Nabi was a late call-up into the Indian squad for the Sri Lanka tour but didn't get to play a single game.

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