Three Indian players are set to feature in the county season after the Sri Lanka Test series is over. Off-spinner R Ashwin will lead the pack after he is confirmed to play for Worcestershire as he is rested for the limited-overs matches against Sri Lanka, an ESPNcricinfo report said on Monday.
Apart from Ashwin, batsman Cheteshwar Pujara was also confirmed to play the Championship. The third player is left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja but which team he will play for is yet to be confirmed. None of the three players are part of India’s squad for the ODI series and the one-off T20I match that was announced on Sunday.
In the initial reports, pacer Ishant Sharma was also confirmed to Warwickshire but he later denied the reports via a tweet that said he has not joined any county.
Pujara will continue his stint with Nottinghamshire for whom he played before the Sri Lanka series and scored a century as well. Both Ashwin and Pujara can be playing against each other when Worcestershire play Nottinghamshire beginning September 5.
Worcestershire are looking for a promotion to the top division from the second division and Ashwin could be a big weapon for them. But if the Indian off-spinner is recalled for the home one-day international series against Australia scheduled for end September-early October, he may only end up play two games for them.
India are scheduled for long tour of England next year and this county stint could prove handy for the Indian players. India captain Virat Kohli had also said earlier that he “would love” to play county cricket. India had lost the previous Test series in England 3-1.
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