Melbourne Renegades star Mohammad Nabi is intent on helping his BBL teammates unlock the secrets of fellow Afghan and Adelaide Strikers magician Rashid Khan.
The wily legspinner starred for the Strikers with figures of 3-19 in their first-up win against Brisbane Heat and looms as a key factor in Sunday night's clash at Adelaide Oval.
Rashid has bamboozled batsmen across the globe this year and, with 92 wickets in 2018, is a chance to become the first bowler to claim 100 T20 wickets in a calendar year.
Notoriously hard to pick, Rashid is No.1 in ICC rankings for T20 bowlers this year.
But Nabi is doing his best to impart his inside knowledge of Rashid's bowling action to his teammates.
"They've asked me about Rashid and how they can play him," Nabi said from Melbourne airport on Saturday.
"I told them to just play straight and wait for the bad ball ... if he is not getting the wickets he will be a bit worried.
"We've played (together) a lot and I play against him all the time ... I know what he's doing.
"He's not a normal legspinner, he's a bit quicker in the air and his action is a little bit tough to read with the wrong-un and the leg break.
"I've scored some runs against him but some of the time he will get me out too."
The Renegades also started their BBL campaign with a win, with Nabi scoring 35 runs in a four-wicket win over Perth Scorchers at Marvel Stadium.
Nabi impressed in seven matches last season but his departure before the finals hurt the Renegades, who suffered a semi-final defeat at the hands of Adelaide.
Having signed a new two-year deal, the 33-year-old will stay for the whole campaign this time.
"I have a lot of friends here and there is a big Afghan community," he said of Melbourne.
"It's good fun, I really enjoy it here."
