I believe in speed and staying straight: Abid Mushtaq

 In Jammu & Kashmir’s historic Ranji Trophy triumph in 2025-26, Abid Mushtaq was a silent warrior. In ten matches, he took only 20 wickets, and in the knock-out stages, just four from three games.

But on day two of North Zone’s Duleep Trophy quarterfinal versus West Zone, the left-arm spinner showed his real worth by picking up his 10th First Class five-wicket haul (five for 39).

The 29-year-old was indeed helped by a red-soil pitch that gripped and offered sufficient turn. But Abid also displayed sufficient guile and control, without getting carried away.

“I try to bowl within the stumps and it’s very difficult to play that,” Abid told reporters on Monday. “My plan is to use the crease. Sometimes I bowl from height, and sometimes from the base. I believe in [higher] speed and staying straight.”

Abid’s methods are straight out of the Ravindra Jadeja playbook, and it was for this reason that the visiting Australians signed him up as a net bowler in 2023 ahead of the Test series.

But back home in the Chenab valley of Jammu region, he had few red-soil wickets to practise on. Abid credits his improvement to the better infrastructure now available and also to the support of those like P. Krishna Kumar, J&K’s bowling coach for the last three years.

“There were more green wickets,” Abid said. “Now we have a variety of pitches… red and black soil. When the wicket is of red soil, I have a lot of confidence. I get goosebumps.”

No wonder he made the West Zone batters dance to his tune.