THE rain that curtailed Surrey’s County Championship match at The Riverside was frustrating in more ways than one.

Having lost both openers early in their second innings, Durham’s Kyle Coetzer and Neil McKenzie had begun to counter-attack, taking a heavy toll on the bowling of the 19-year-old Surrey allrounder Chris Jordan. In Durham’s first knock, Jordan, summoned by captain Mark Butcher to deal with the tailenders, had been uncompromising. He pushed Paul Wiseman, Mark Davies and Neil Killeen on to the back foot with a series of vicious bouncers, before sending them on their way. Wiseman was caught behind; Davies and Killeen had their off stumps knocked out by yorkers.

It was classic fast bowling, but now Jordan faced a more severe examination. First McKenzie, then Coetzer whipped him through the leg side for consecutive boundaries, but just as he was beginning to respond, beating Coetzer for pace outside off stump, the weather closed in. Given that he had earlier been run out by teammate Ali Brown without scoring, it was not a great day for one of the most promising players in county cricket, but as Jordan pointed out afterwards, he feels he is learning something in every session he plays.

His emergence towards the end of last season, fast-tracked by Surrey after the shortest of trials, took many people by surprise, including the Barbadian himself. He arrived in England after being offered a cricket scholarship by Dulwich College in London, having been spotted by the former England batsman Bill Athey, who is now the school’s cricket coach, playing in an annual pro-am tournament on the island.

“I scored 30-odd, didn’t take any wickets but bowled quite well,” recalled Jordan. “The next day I took an exam, and a couple of weeks later got a call saying I’d been awarded a two-year scholarship to cover my A-levels.”

Although his immediate family are in Barbados, Jordan had visited England regularly. “My grandparents live in Stevenage, and I have an aunt and cousins in London. Dulwich was an enjoyable time for me. It is a traditional school, but I came over in January [2006] to get accustomed to the school-work, played cricket in the summer and started the academic work fresh in September.”

It was Athey who told him he was going to play in a second-team game for Surrey. “I was nervous, but interested to see where my game was at. I batted seven and bowled third change; I didn’t take any wickets but had a good run out. The next day [Surrey second team coach] Nad Shahid told me there was a possibility I’d be offered a contract. It has happened so quickly I have not had time to think about it, and maybe that’s good.”

Learning that Jordan holds a British passport can only have helped Surrey make up their mind quickly. They offered him a two-year contract to fit around his A-levels, which meant he was available for the final third of last season. He played the last five championship games, four of which Surrey won, taking 20 wickets at 24.50 and scoring 97 runs in six innings.

“I made my debut in a one-day match against Middlesex at Lord’s, which was great. My relatives came to watch and take pictures. I was disappointed with my figures. I went for 43 off my eight overs and took one wicket, Owais Shah, but everybody seemed to reckon I’d bowled quite well. I wasn’t expecting to make my championship debut the next week, but I took four wickets - Martin van Jaarsveld and a couple of other key players for Kent.”

Dennis Lillee, who saw Jordan bowl in Perth last winter, has no doubt he will play Test cricket. The question is, for which country? Like Kevin Pietersen before him, Jordan needs to fulfil the residency qualification, meaning he will not be eligible to play for England until 2010.

If they have any sense, West Indies will come calling long before then. If they do, Jordan faces a difficult decision. “I’m a Barbadian and I would have loved to play my cricket in the West Indies, but England has given me opportunities. This is where I’m playing my cricket, I feel comfortable here. It could be hard to choose, but at the moment it’s too soon. I’m thinking every day to take it step by step, session by session, game by game. If that bridge does come, I’m sure I’ll take the right decision.”

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