Auqib Nabi du Jammu

Jammu and Kashmir’s fast bowler Auqib Nabi has done the unthinkable on his Duleep Trophy debut. The 28-year-old has taken a double hat-trick (4 wickets in 4 balls) in the North Zone vs East Zone match at the Centre of Excellence Ground 1 in Bengaluru.

Nabi was the best pacer in the last Ranji Trophy season and had taken a 6-wicket haul in his first-class match in February. He’s carried the same form against the best batters in the country. Wicketless for the first 8 overs, Nabi claimed his 5 wickets in the space of just 13 balls.

Auqib Nabi creates Duleep Trophy history

After scoring a quickfire 44 from just 33 balls, Nabi failed to make the mark with the ball for the East Zone. The trail was just 183 when Nabi finally struck. He clean-bowled North Zone’s best batter, Virat Singh, and helped his team gain an upper hand.

This was just the start. Nabi bagged Manishi’s wicket, trapping him in front of the wicket. 2 in 2. Now, the East Zone was on top. And then the 28-year-old did the unthinkable. He cleaned up Mukhtar Hussain to claim a hat-trick on his Duleep Trophy debut. From 222/5 to 222/8 in just 3 balls. The East Zone only scored

Nabi one-upped himself. Taking Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal’s wicket on the first ball of his next over, becoming the first ever player to take a double hat-trick in the Duleep Trophy and just the fourth Indian to do so in first-class cricket. The East Zone only scored just 8 runs for the last 5 wickets, with Nabi taking them all and giving the North Zone a 175-run lead.

Indian with 4 wickets in 4 balls in first class cricket

• Shankar Saini, Delhi v Himachal Pradesh, 1988
• Mohammad Mudhasir, Jammu & Kashmir v Rajasthan, 2018
• Kulwant Khejroliya, Madhya Pradesh v Baroda, 2024
• Auqib Nabi, North Zone v East Zone, Today