Worcestershire will rely on a heavy diet of spin in their bid to reach T20 Blast Finals Day for the first time in seven years, after they announced the signing of Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza as a replacement for Ben Dwarshuis.
Dwarshuis, the Australian left-arm seamer, took 18 wickets for Worcestershire in the Blast last season and also contributed with the bat. He was due to return in 2026, but was withdrawn from his deal by Cricket Australia last month after he was signed by Ricky Ponting's Punjab Kings in the IPL auction.
Raza, a mystery spinner who bats in the middle order, is not a like-for-like replacement but has signed for the duration of the Blast. Worcestershire's other overseas player will be Usama Mir, the Pakistani legspinner who signed a long-term deal last year, while the former England Under-19s left-arm spinner Fateh Singh will complete a strong spin contingent at New Road.
Raza's previous experience of the Blast came with Northamptonshire in 2024, when he also appeared for Manchester Originals in the Hundred.
"I am delighted to be joining Worcestershire Rapids this summer and to be playing in a T20 competition that I really enjoy," he said. "I have loved my time in England whenever I have played there previously, so I can't wait to get started this summer and link up with the squad."
Worcestershire were Blast champions in 2018 and runners-up the following year but have struggled in the competition since, only reaching the quarter-finals once in the last six seasons.
"Sikandar's stats in T20 cricket speak for themself and as a side who want to kick on in the Vitality Blast and challenge for the trophy, we know the importance of having real quality in key areas," Alan Richardson, Worcestershire's head coach, said.
"With Ben [Dwarshuis] unable to join us, we wanted to make sure that we had someone with international pedigree and who can impact the game in all three facets, so we were very keen to get Sikandar on board as soon as we knew he was available."
Another Midlands club, Leicestershire, announced on Thursday that Keshav Maharaj's deal has fallen through after CSA imposed "workload constraints" on him. He has been replaced by Ajaz Patel, the New Zealand left-arm spinner, who will join the club on an all-format, full-season deal.
Elsewhere, Kent have announced that Australian seamer Tom Rogers will return to the club for the Blast this year for a third successive season. Rogers has not played any cricket since he sustained a shoulder injury in a win away at Sussex last July and will be competing with South Africans Keith Dudgeon and Senuran Muthusamy for Kent's two overseas spots in the Blast.
Kent have also confirmed that Zak Crawley will remain with the club in 2026 after signing another rolling one-year deal, shadowing his England contract which expires in October.