India left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav is set to make his debut in English county cricket after signing for Yorkshire for two separate spells during the ongoing domestic season.
Kuldeep will first feature in five One-Day Cup matches between July 24 and August 2 before returning to India for the two-Test tour of Sri Lanka in August, where he is expected to be part of the squad. He will then rejoin Yorkshire in September for the club’s final three County Championship matches of the season.
The move comes just days after Kuldeep went through India’s entire white-ball tour of Ireland and England without playing a single match. His omission from all 10 white-ball games, even after Washington Sundar was ruled out through injury, drew widespread attention.
Speaking after completing the deal, Kuldeep said he was looking forward to testing himself in English conditions.
“I’ve always enjoyed the challenge of playing in English conditions and after speaking with the management, I became really excited to join up with the team,” Kuldeep said. “I’m looking forward to making a positive contribution during my time at Headingley.”
Kuldeep has toured England three times with India but has played only one Test in the country. He featured in Lord’s Test in 2018, where he bowled just nine overs.
The 30-year-old last played red-ball cricket in the one-off Test against Afghanistan in June. He has taken 79 wickets in 18 Tests at an average of 22.35, while his ODI record stands at 194 wickets from 121 matches, including a career-best 6 for 25. Kuldeep has also been part of India’s two T20 World Cup-winning squads.
Yorkshire General Manager Gavin Hamilton believes the spinner will strengthen the side during the closing stages of the season.
“Kuldeep is an accomplished, international quality player who will add incredible strength to our lineup for these blocks of fixtures,” Hamilton said. “Given the dry summer we’ve experienced, we expect spin to play an important role during the closing stages of the season. Kuldeep gives us another dimension with his left-arm wristspin and brings a wealth of experience at the highest level.”
Kuldeep becomes the second active Indian spinner to feature in the County Championship this season after left-arm spinner Manav Suthar, who is currently representing Warwickshire.
When he makes his Yorkshire debut against Glamorgan on Friday, Kuldeep will also become the fifth Indian to play for the county after Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Cheteshwar Pujara and Mayank Agarwal. Ruturaj Gaikwad had signed for Yorkshire in 2025 but later withdrew for personal reasons.