India's 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batter to play club cricket in England to bolster his selection chances for five-Test series

India's 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batter to play club cricket in England to bolster his selection chances for five-Test series
India's Srikar Bharat (L) and Dhruv Jurel run during a practice session at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on January 23, 2024, ahead of their first Test against England.

Highlights:

KS Bharat has signed for Dulwich Cricket Club in London.

Bharat has played 7 Tests for India.

Bharat is nearing 6,000 runs in first-class cricket.

India's 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batter Srikar Bharat is headed to England to play for London-based Dulwich Cricket Club in the 2025 Surrey Championship. Bharat who got a chance to keep wickets in the Test side in the absence of an injured Rishabh Pant, will be looking to make an impact after the club's promotion to the Premier Division.

Bharat went unsold in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction. He is an experienced campaigner who has 10 centuries and 32 fifties in first-class cricket. In 2015, he made headlines when he became the first Indian wicketkeeper-batter to score a triple century in Ranji Trophy. So far, he has scored 5,686 runs from 169 innings at an average of 36.44.

Bharat is not the only Indian Test cricketer who will be heading to England after going unsold in the mega auction. Mumbai's fast-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur has signed for Essex in a bid for his Test comeback ahead of five-Test series in England. However, there is a chance Thakur may get roped in as one of the replacements. 

Also, Karun Nair and Yuzvendra Chahal will play for Northamptonshire after the completion of the IPL 2025. An in-form Nair has been picked by DC whereas Chahal will play for Punjab Kings (PBKS) this season. 

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Bharat's IPL career

Bharat was picked up by Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in the IPL 2015. However, he did not make his IPL debut until the 2021 edition for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). He scored 191 runs from seven innings including a match-winning unbeaten 78. 

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In the following season, he went back to Delhi Capitals (DC). After two disappointing scores, he was dropped. In 2023, he was part of Gujarat Titans (GT) where he did not get a game. Similarly, in IPL 2024, he was a part of Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) title-winning squad but did not get a game there as well.

Bharat's Test career

Bharat made his Test debut in the Test series at home against Australia. His last Test appearance was in home Tests against England before Dhruv Jurel replaced him in the playing XI. The Andhra Pradesh-born wicketkeeper-batter has played seven Tests and scored 221 runs from 12 innings averaging 20.09. He is yet to score a half-century in Tests.