Cricket: Surrey hand short-term contract to academy player Yousef Majid

Academy player Yousef Majid has been registered for Surrey County Cricket Club and has given been a short-term contract for the duration of the Royal London One Day Cup. The left-arm spinner has played for the Surrey county age group sides and was part of the 2022 academy intake.

Majid has impressed at each step along the journey and made his debut for the Surrey second team in 2021. This season, he’s taken 10 wickets in two Second XI Championship games – including 6-54 against Middlesex.

The 18-year-old is a student at Cranleigh School, where Surrey have a strong relationship with the school and director of cricket, Stuart Welch, former pupils include Ollie Pope, Stuart Meaker and Tom Lawes. Majid was part of the Berkshire pathway before joining Surrey’s set up at 16 to play for the U17 and U18 sides.

Majid, who plays at Chesham Cricket Club, has worked hard on improving his all-round game and has impressed Surrey’s academy team with his accurate bowling and in-game intelligence.

Alec Stewart, director of cricket at Surrey CCC, said “This is a great opportunity for Yousef, another player to progress from our academy system, to be involved in the Royal London One Day Cup squad and I’m confident he’s ready to step up to this level.”

Chris Taylor, Surrey’s head of talent pathway, praised the young bowler’s mental attributes as well as his cricketing ability: “We’ve seen growth in how Yousef reads the game situation and adapts to challenge the batters. He always shows determination and a competitive drive to succeed and to improve his game. Yousef’s a great young man and has a real twinkle in his eye when he plays – he’s put in the hours and he really deserves this chance.”

Surrey’s Royal London One Day Cup campaign starts on August 2 at Guildford against Leicestershire.