The Indian contingent in the county cricket has increased as another player has joined the English domestic season this year, this time for Essex.
The renowned county team Essex announced on Saturday that Khaleel Ahmed has joined the team till the end of the season.
Khaleel, who played for the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2025, will be hoping to make his mark with his English stint.
The left-arm pacer, a native of Tonk in Rajasthan, has been in and around the Indian team in the last 12 months or so. He will feature in both the County Championship and the Metro Bank One Day Cup campaigns.
A graduate of India’s Under-19 team from the 2016 World Cup, Ahmed has earned 29 caps for the senior national side-11 in ODIs and 18 in T20Is. Since debuting in ODIs against Hong Kong in 2018, Ahmed has picked up 15 wickets in 11 matches, averaging 31.00 with an economy of 5.81. His best figures in the format are 3 for 13.
Domestically, he has been a consistent performer for Rajasthan in India’s List A competitions, collecting 92 wickets in 63 matches.
The 27-year-old was recently part of the India A side that took on the England Lions earlier this month. In the first four-day match at Northampton, he impressed with a four-wicket haul in the first innings.
Khaleel Ahmed 5th Indian in County Cricket in 2025
With his inclusion, Khaleel Ahmed has now become the 5th Indian player to be part of the county cricket this season. The CSK pacer is already preceded by his CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who is playing for Yorkshire. Elsewhere, Yuzvendra Chahal is part of Northamptonshire, whereas Ishan Kishan has made a superb start for Nottinghamshire. Tilak Varma is also playing for the first time in county cricket and has started with a century for Hampshire.