Harsh critic cries “fair!” unexpectedly (9)

I believe the answer is:

scarifier

'harsh critic' is the definition.
(to scarify is to wound with harsh criticism)

'cries fair unexpectedly' is the wordplay.
'unexpectedly' is an anagram indicator.
'cries'+'fair'='criesfair'
'criesfair' anagrammed gives 'SCARIFIER'.

(Another definition for scarifier that I've seen is " Tool for lawn care".)

I've seen this clue in The Times.

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