India's batting all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer has been signed by Lancashire for the ongoing One-Day Cup and two matches of the County Championship. Iyer is likely to make his debut for England's domestic side on July 28.
Iyer is ecstatic to play for Lancashire, the same club as the legendary James Anderson. Also, he will be the fifth Indian to play for Lancashire after Farokh Engineer, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Washington Sundar.
"I am incredibly excited to head over to England and to have the opportunity to play county cricket for the first time in my career," Iyer said in a statement. "Lancashire is a very historic county with a long history of welcoming Indian players to their club. I am looking forward to emulating the likes of Farokh Engineer, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and most recently, Washington Sundar in wearing the Red Rose colours at Emirates Old Trafford.
"To test my skills in both one-day and first-class cricket in English conditions is going to really benefit my game. I hope that I can entertain the fans and help my Lancashire teammates to achieve their targets in both formats this summer."
Iyer’s two County fixtures
Lancashire's Director of Cricket Performance is looking forward to having an explosive batter in the middle-order and someone who can chip in with the ball too. He confirmed that Iyer's County games will be against Surrey and Hampshire.
"Venkatesh will add experience to a young side during the One-Day Cup, whilst providing an explosive batting option in the middle-order and another seam bowler that we can turn to with the ball," Chilton said.
KKR teammate recommends him
Iyer’s KKR teammate Phil Salt recommended him to the franchise. The two batted together during KKR’s successful Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 as they ended their trophy drought. However, it is yet to be seen whether the two will share the dressing room for Lancashire considering England’s schedule.
The 29-year-old is likely to fly back home for Duleep Trophy starting September 5.
Iyer’s short ODI career and First-Class numbers
While Iyer is yet to make his Test debut, he has played two ODIs for India. The Madhya Pradesh batter made his ODI debut in January 2022. He was dismissed for a single-digit score on debut and then managed to score 22 runs in the middle order. He remained wicketless in his second ODI appearance after bowling five overs.
So far, the 29-year-old has played 20 First-Class matches. He has scored 1,132 runs from 32 innings at an average of 37.73 including a century and 10 fifties.
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