Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan has said that if domestic performances do matter to the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee, why didn’t they reward Auqib Nabi with a call-up for the one-off Test against Afghanistan and play Mohammed Siraj even when the match wasn’t a part of the World Test Championship?
The conversation took root yet again after Madhya Pradesh spinner Saransh Jain was rewarded with an India call-up for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka.
Nabi had missed out on the one-off Test against Afghanistan as well, despite travelling with the team as a net bowler. He strengthened his case with an outstanding domestic season, playing a key role in Jammu and Kashmir’s historic Ranji Trophy win, including a match-winning spell
against Karnataka in the final.
Nabi further enhanced his credentials on the India A tour of Sri Lanka, where he claimed six wickets across two four-day matches. But despite his consistent performances in domestic cricket and for India A, the selectors once again overlooked him for a place in the senior Test team.
“I honestly don’t have any logical answer for Nabi not being picked. I did not understand the selection process. Mohammad Siraj is your go-to bowler. When (Jasprit) Bumrah isn’t there, Siraj becomes your No.1 bowler,” Pathan said while speaking to Sportstar.
“So, what was the need to play against Afghanistan in a Test that was not even part of the World Test Championship? If domestic performances matter, why did you not reward Auqib?” Pathan added.
The former Indian cricketer made a strong case for rewarding domestic performances as well, arguing that Nabi has shown all the qualities needed to succeed at the highest level.
“People talk about pace, but you have got to see how a bowler is beating the bat. Is he troubling the best batters in domestic cricket? He has done that consistently,” Pathan said.
“Even in the final of the Ranji Trophy, he troubled senior batters like KL Rahul and everyone saw that. So, his performances deserved a reward. The more you delay a pacer’s peak, the more you are going to lose out on him,” Pathan added.
