Saqlain to depart Surrey

Saqlain Mushtaq appears to have played his last match for Surrey

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Surrey are set to release Saqlain Mushtaq in order to pursue the possible signing of an overseas spinner for next season.

The former Pakistan off-spinner, who holds a British passport, was the county’s highest wicket-taker of a disappointing 2008 season.

Surrey have been linked with a move for Harbhajan Singh, who had a productive first spell at the Brit Oval in 2007.

But Paul Sheldon, Surrey chief executive, said that the county's link with Harbhajan was “one of logicality, not fact”.

Saqlain, 31, finished with 40 first-class wickets this season, at an average of 32, but his outings in limited-overs cricket were rare. He played only one Friends Provident Trophy match, and was left out of the Brown Caps' Twenty20 Cup side until the matches against Essex Eagles and Hampshire Hawks.

Aside from being recognised as the first off-spinner to master the ‘doosra’, the ball that spins away from the right-handed batsman with no discernible change of action, Saqlain will also rank as one of Surrey’s most successful recent overseas players.

He first represented the county in 1997, returning each year until 2005. He chose to play Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy cricket for Ireland in 2006, and had a stint at Sussex alongside Pakistan spin twin Mushtaq Ahmed in 2007.

In all, Saqlain bowled over 3,500 overs for Surrey, taking 424 first-class wickets.

Saqlain also played 49 Tests and 169 one-day internationals for Pakistan. Among Pakistan spinners, only Abdul Qadir and Danish Kaneria have taken more Test scalps than Saqlain’s 208.

He played the last of his international matches against India in 2004, and completed a four-year qualification period for a British passport.

After a series of knee problems, Saqlain expressed his desire to be considered for England selection, but that wish has never materialised.