 "Not picked in India's World Cup squad, Chahal joins Kent for County cricket")
Nursing the disappointment of not being picked in India's World Cup squad for the ODI World Cup 2023 after being ignored for the Asia Cup as well, Yuzvendra Chahal on Wednesday, September 6, joined England's domestic side Kent to play in the County Championship 2023-24.
Chahal, who has not featured in any red-ball game for India, will be available for the club's remaining County Championship matches, subject to regulatory approval. In his 33 first-class appearances, mainly for his domestic side Haryana in India, Chahal has 87 wickets with best figures of 6-44 achieved against Hyderabad in the Ranji Trophy.
The 33-year-old will be following in the footsteps of other Indian cricketers such as Cheteshwar Pujara, Jaydev Unadkat, Haryana teammate Jayant Yadav and B Sai Sudharsan, who have all joined different County sides to play the four-day games.
Chahal is likely to be available for Kent's remaining two home Championship matches against Nottinghamshire and Lancashire, as well as an away fixture against Somerset, confirmed the county side in a post on their official website.
Expressing his excitement about the move, Chahal said, "This is an exciting challenge for me, playing in English county cricket, and one I'm very much looking forward to." Back in June and July, another Indian bowler—Arshdeep Singh also played for Kent.
Paul Downton, Kent's Director of Cricket, was delighted to have Chahal on his side as well. He was especially excited to have a spinner with the unavailability of regulars Matt Parkinson and Hami Qadri.
"He is really looking forward to playing in English conditions and will bring a significant amount of skill and international experience to our squad," Downton said.