Saini is set to feature in the County Championship as well as in the Royal London One-Day Cup for Kent. (Photo: @BCCI/Twitter)Indian pacer Navdeep Saini has become the latest sub-continental addition to the ongoing domestic cricket season in England, with the 29-year old signing a contract with Kent.
Saini, who last featured in professional cricket for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2022 and was part of the India squad for the Sri Lanka tour only a year ago, is due to play three County Championship matches and five Royal London Cup games. This however, subject to visa and regulatory approval.
.@navdeepsaini96 is a Spitfire ✈#TeamIndia 🇮🇳 #SuperKent pic.twitter.com/VNjCaHtazE
— Kent Cricket (@KentCricket) July 15, 2022
Saini isn’t the first Indian player to feature in the domestic English cricket this season with Cheteshwar Pujara (Sussex), Washington Sundar (Lancashire), Krunal Pandya (Warwickshire) and Umesh Yadav (Middlesex) already having made their appearance.
“It’s a great opportunity to play county cricket and I’m looking forward to giving my all for Kent,” Saini said, in a statement issued by Kent, on the new chapter in his cricket career.
Kent, who have had a tough season with the ball in the County Championship, do believe Saini to be a positive addition to the squad. Paul Downton, director of cricket at Kent said, “In a year when it’s been difficult to take wickets, we’re excited to have the opportunity to add a fast bowler of Navdeep’s quality to our squad.”
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The India right-arm quick is likely to share share the new-ball duties for Kent with New Zealand pacer, Matt Henry. It is understood that South African all-rounder, George Linde is also on Kent’s books but the counties in England only being able to field two overseas players in the playing XI makes the move less plausible.
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