Rahul Chahar Joins Surrey Ahead of Crucial County Championship Finale

Indian leg-spinner Rahul Chahar will be part of Surrey’s team for their last County Championship match of the season against Hampshire at the Utilita Bowl. The 26-year-old joins Surrey as they aim to win the Championship for the fourth year in a row. Chahar was registered by Surrey earlier this month in line with ECB regulations, but he did not feature in their home fixtures against Warwickshire and Nottinghamshire. The latter ended in a narrow 20-run defeat, a result that brought Nottinghamshire into the title race.

Surrey now trails by 14 points, making the Hampshire clash a must-win encounter, with their fate also depending on Nottinghamshire’s result against Warwickshire at Trent Bridge. Injuries in Surrey’s team have opened the door for Chahar to join. Their main spin bowlers, Will Jacks and Cam Steel, are out, and Tamil Nadu spinner R. Sai Kishore, who was expected back for the last part of the season, can’t play after having finger surgery.

Rahul Chahar Joins Surrey as Sai Kishore Misses Out Due to Injury

The leg-spinner plays for Rajasthan in the Ranji Trophy and has taken 87 wickets in 24 first-class matches, averaging 26.12, with his best figures being 9 for 148. Although he hasn’t played much for India, just one ODI and six T20Is, he is famous for helping the Mumbai Indians win back-to-back IPL titles in 2019 and 2020.

He has also had short spells with Punjab Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad, making just one appearance this season as an impact substitute. Speaking about this chance, the Rajasthan-born player said he is excited and ready to make a difference in the big match.

"I'm excited to join Surrey for this week's match. I'm coming here to have an impact and help the team in their final match of the season," he said as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Alec Stewart Welcomes Rahul Chahar to Surrey Squad

Surrey’s high-performance advisor, Alec Stewart, warmly welcomed Chahar, saying it was important given the team’s current situation. He also talked about Sai Kishore’s injury, which kept him out of the last part of the season.

"Adding Rahul to the squad gives us another spin option at the Utilita Bowl. We always knew that we would be missing players for the final period of the season and try to plan accordingly given the potential surfaces and the opposition we're playing. We had originally earmarked for Sai Kishore to return for the latter stages of the season but he unfortunately has a finger injury resulting in an operation that has meant he was unavailable," Stewart said.