Crossword Genius

Charlie, out of practice, may be surly (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

crusty

'surly' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'charlie out of practice' is the wordplay.
'charlie' becomes 'c' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'out of practice' becomes 'rusty' ('rusty' can be a synonym of 'out of practice').
'c'+'rusty'='CRUSTY'

'may be' is the link.

(Other definitions for crusty that I've seen before include "Sour and brusque, like outer part of bread" , "bloomer like this?" , "Curtsy (anag.)" , "Well baked - short-tempered" , "Cross or harsh, like outer layer of loaf" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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