Former England cricketer and current stand-in England head coach Graham Thorpe praised Sam Curran and said that playing for MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League has helped the young all-rounder.
Graham Thorpe Praises Sam Curran
Curran has been part of CSK since IPL 2020, and he has emerged as one of the key players for the franchise. Speaking on how IPL has helped Curran, Thorpe said that the T20 league has allowed the youngster to play under high-pressure situations.
“I think it’s (IPL) helped him enormously,” Thorpe says. “Every environment Sam has gone into, he’s shown that ability to compete and an ability to find a way of putting performances in. From that perspective, playing in the IPL has put him in high-pressured situations and pushed him.
“His hitting ability with the bat was always there. I think that’s progressed to a really good level. He’s bowling at important times in the IPL, so he’s put under pressure and challenged. At 23, he’s getting some really good experiences.
Curran displayed a solid batting performance not so long ago for England in the 3rd ODI against India where he almost led his team to a sensational comeback victory.
His recent match-winning performance with the ball in the 2nd ODI against Sri Lanka where he picked a five-wicket haul, has further added to Curran’s credibility as an allrounder.
“When he comes back and plays with England, he’s having to challenge for a place so he’s being put under pressure there too. That’s not a bad thing. One of his great personality traits is that he’s a real competitor. We have seen that ever since he was a young lad, and his skill level is going up. For a 23-year-old it’s a good place to be. We want him to keep getting better and better.”
Thorpe further said that England wants Curran to develop as an all-format player. “Given where he’s at, the amount of experience he’s got as a 23-year-old in terms of international cricket and franchise cricket as well, makes us believe he’s just starting out,” Thorpe said.
“Of course, he’s still got to work really hard. His T20 cricket has progressed really well, but I think establishing himself as a 50-over player as well is a really important part of it. He’s got to try and be in the mix as well for Test cricket.
“It sounds like quite a lot of cricket. As you know, with someone like Ben Stokes, the amount of work and fitness levels that are required for that is huge. So the challenge for Sam to be a multi-format cricketer is delivering that consistency as well for England time and time again.
Watch Sam Curran’s Impressive bowling attack vs India
“That’ll be one of the bigger challenges for Sam going forward. But that very much lies on his shoulders to do that. We know we’ve got a very exciting cricketer with us, and we just have to keep encouraging him to improve and keep getting better as a player all the time,” he signed off.
