Amar Virdi joins Worcestershire on one-match loan

The Surrey off-spinner last played a first-class match more than 700 days ago

Amar Virdi is in line to play his first County Championship match in almost two years after joining Worcestershire on a short-term loan.

Virdi, the Surrey off-spinner, hasn't played a first-class game since July 2022, when he joined Somerset for a single week on a similar basis.

Virdi, who was part of England's enlarged touring groups during the pandemic and has taken 123 red-ball wickets for Surrey at 29.73 apiece, last featured for his parent club in the Championship in 2021. Instead, he has been restricted to appearances in the One-Day Cup.

^{Amar Virdi last played a Championship game for Surrey in 2021 (Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images)}

He signed a contract extension at the end of last season, but that hasn't prompted a change in fortunes, with Cameron Steel starting the campaign superbly as Surrey's leg-spinner, while Dan Lawrence's off-spin has been used frequently.

Virdi essentially replaces Shoaib Bashir, who was signed on loan by Worcestershire in early June but has since returned to Somerset.

He comes into Worcestershire's squad for the Championship fixture against Durham, with whom they were promoted last autumn. Ben Stokes is expected to feature for the home side.

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