Sufiyan Muqeem for Pakistan and Kuldeep Yadav. Image Credits: X
Derbyshire Cricket County Club, on Friday afternoon, announced their latest signing for the forthcoming Vitality Blast season, with Sufiyan Muqeem set to join them for half of the T20 season later this year.
Having worked with Derbyshire’s Head of Cricket, Mickey Arthur, previously, Muqeem is among the rare breed of left-arm wrist spinners in international cricket, alongside someone like Kuldeep Yadav, who have mastered this form of bowling and bring a different dimension to the bowling attack, especially in white-ball formats.
While he is most likely to miss out on the upcoming T20 World Cup, his short stint in England begins at the end of the Pakistan Super League 2026.
Sufiyan Muqeem joins Derbyshire for Vitality Blast
Derbyshire took to their social media platforms on January 23 to confirm the availability of the wrist spinner for six matches, including the game against Notts Outlaws at the Central Co-op County Ground at the end of May.
Arthur, who has coached the player during his time at the Rangpur Riders camp in the Bangladesh Premier League, had big praises for Kuldeep’s Pakistani counterpart, speaking highly of the attitude and hunger to do well for his team.
“Sufiyan is a rising star in T20 cricket and someone I’ve already had the pleasure of working with, so I’ve seen his quality and resilience in pressure situations first-hand. When it comes to recruitment, the person matters just as much as the player, and we’ve signed a gem in Sufiyan. He’s hungry for success, and I know he will be a fantastic addition to our team for the first half of the Vitality Blast,” said Mickey Arthur.
Sufiyan Muqeem reacts to signing with Derbyshire
Upon signing a short-term deal with the team, who are looking to improve their previous year’s performances, having finished at the bottom of the North Group table, with four wins in 14 matches, Muqeem expressed his excitement for the opportunity to work alongside Arthur again and help the team achieve unprecedented success in the tournament.
“I’m excited to be joining the Falcons and working with Mickey again. He’s a great coach, and I’m looking forward to playing in England,” said the player.
Derbyshire to benefit from Muqeem’s uniqeness
Sufiyan Muqeem, who possesses the rare quality to turn the ball both ways with his left-arm wrist spin, is a similar bowler to how the Indian spinner, Kuldeep, operates in the middle overs and has notably been a part of the Pakistan Emerging Asia Cup squad in 2024, picking 2/28 vs India and was also included in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad.
While he faces stiff competition in the spin department in the national team, Sufiyan Muqeem has played for them in 4 ODIs and 19 T20Is from 2023 to 2025, picking 8 and 27 wickets, at an economy rate of just 4.91 and 6.28, respectively. His best figures in T20Is read 5/3.
Much like Kuldeep, his prowess is attacking the batters, using his flight and drift in the crucial phases of the match, bowling tough overs and striking at a quick rate. In 38 T20 matches across leagues, Sufiyan Muqeem has picked 51 wickets, conceding only at an economy rate of 6.35 and strike rate of 15.
As things stand, he is not a part of Pakistan's current squad ahead of the T20 World Cup, but a good spell in England could help him to get a recall for the Men in Green.
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