Khaleel Ahmed officially drafted into red-ball squad for matches in England
Table of Contents
Indian paceman Khaleel Ahmed has signed a deal with English County Championship team Essex. He has signed with Essex for the remainder of the county cricket season, which will be followed by a brief stint in the one-day games.
The two-month stint in England for the CSK pacer would go on till the end of September; this will include six first-class matches in the County Championship and will be followed by a stretch of 10 games in the upcoming One-Day Cup for Essex.
Khaleel will be joining the squad anytime soon and will be available to be picked for the County Championship match against Yorkshire this Sunday.
"I have heard a lot about the rich history of the Club, and I'm excited to be part of it and will look to make an immediate impact," said Khaleel after joining the English County club.
Khaleel Ahmed's record in First-Class and International Cricket
Khaleel Ahmed, the left-arm fast bowler, hails from the state of Rajasthan and was seen starring for India on several occasions as well. He was seen in the Men in Blue shirts but is yet to make his Test debut for India.
Khaleel Ahmed has played quite a few games for Rajasthan in first-class cricket. Though his career might not have been a long-spanning one, the speedster has made an impact on several occasions with the red ball. He has starred in 20 first-class games and picked 56 wickets at an average of 27.67.
The 27-year-old pacer made his debut for India back in 2018 against Hong Kong in the ODI format. His debut in the T20I format came in the same year, in November against the West Indies. So far, he has picked 15 ODI wickets and 16 T20I wickets in 11 and 18 matches played in the two formats, respectively.
Khaleel Ahmed had an exceptional season despite CSK's blunder in IPL 2025
Khaleel Ahmed made an impact in England earlier this year when the pacer was part of India A's squad that played against the England Lions in the practice games before the onset of the India vs England Test series.
Khaleed was included in India A's pacers deck after a decent performance in the Indian Premier League 2025 playing for the Chennai Super Kings. In 14 league matches, the CSK pacer has picked up 15 wickets at an economy of 9.57. Despite CSK's awful season, Khaleel had some considerable success with CSK.
Playing for India A against England Lions, Khaleel picked 4 wickets in the first innings, giving away 70 runs. The Essex director of cricket, Chris Silverwood, has looked forward to adding Khaleel Ahmed for the county season after being impressed by his performance in England with India A.
"We were impressed with his performances for India A and firmly believe he can strengthen our already very strong seam attack," Silverwood said.
"As a left-arm seamer, he offers something different and will add a new dynamic to the squad in both the One Day Cup and the County Championship," added the Essex director of cricket.
Other Indian players in the County Championship
Other than the pacer Khaleel Ahmed, several other Indian players who are not part of India's Test squad in England are currently playing in the County Championship.
Other than Khaleel, players like Yuzvendra Chahal (Northamptonshire), Ishan Kishan (Nottinghamshire), Ruturaj Gaikwad (Yorkshire), and Tilak Varma (Hampshire) are among other Indians to have signed for county sides. All of these players are looking forward to strengthening their Test antics to make it to the Indian side.
ALSO READ: Yash Dayal staring at cricket ban after sexual harassment FIR reaches UP CM Yogi Adityanath's office
Tagged:
Khaleel Ahmed Essex County Club India National Cricket Team England National Cricket Team Royal London One-Day Cup County Championship Chennai Super Kings IPL
