Australia batter Patterson joins Surrey for three-match County Championship deal

New Delhi, May 2 (IANS) Australia batter Kurtis Patterson has signed up with Surrey for a three-match deal in the ongoing County Championship season. He will be available for Surrey's game against Warwickshire, happening from May 16-19 as well as for their home games against Yorkshire and Essex.

Patterson, who won two Test caps for Australia against Sri Lanka in 2019, comes into the county championship on the back of a successful 2024/25 Sheffield Shield season, where he scored 743 runs for New South Wales at an average of 57.15.

“I’m looking forward to joining Surrey. I’ve always wanted to play county cricket, so I jumped at the chance to represent Surrey when the opportunity presented itself. I’ve heard great things about the environment at Surrey and can’t wait to play in front of the fans at the Kia Oval,” said Patterson in a statement issued by the club on Friday.

Patterson’s signing comes at a time when Surrey won’t have the services of Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson, as they are expected to be in England’s squad for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe starting on May 22.

“With the non-availability of our England players, I’m pleased to add Kurtis Patterson to the squad. He’s a top-quality cricketer who will add quality and depth to our batting line up for the next three games,” said Alec Stewart, Surrey’s High-Performance Advisor.

Apart from Patterson, Cameron Green and Cameron Bancroft (Gloucestershire), Daniel Hughes (Sussex), Peter Handscomb (Leicestershire), and Caleb Jewell (Derbyshire) are the other Australian cricketers currently featuring in the County Championship.

Seam-bowling all-rounder Beau Webster is set to make his county championship debut for Warwickshire against Yorkshire, where pacer Jordan Buckingham will also be in action, on Friday.

On the other hand, Marcus Harris will be in action for Lancashire against Gloucestershire on Friday, while Marnus Labuschagne would be playing two games for Glamorgan ahead of Australia playing World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa in June.

--IANS

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