NZ vs ENG | Sam Curran hopeful of not being vulnerable and cementing his Test spot
Left-arm pacer Sam Curran is motivating himself to cement his place in the England Test side by trying to be less vulnerable and more consistent with his performances. Curran was the man of the series against India in the Test series last summer but since then, he has been in and out of the side.
Sam Curran at times has bailed England out of tough situations with his bat, especially against India and then delivered when needed with the ball. With the batting average of 30 in 11 Tests and having taken 21 wickets at an average of 29, Curran has the potential to become the all-rounder England desperately need at the moment.
He was the man of the series against India in the summer of 2018 but since then, has already been dropped from the Test side four times and his lack of pace costs him in conditions where there is no swing and that is exactly what happened in West Indies. He is hoping to put on more consistent performances and becoming a mainstay in this Test side. After having lost James Anderson for the rest of the Ashes series with a calf injury, Curran was hopeful of making the XI but was behind Jofra Archer in the pecking order.
"The team was in a good place going into the Ashes. I was in all the squads, so that was a confidence booster. At the same time you'd love to be playing, and as the series went on you're itching to get out on the field," he told Cricbuzz.
With Anderson still ruled out, there is only one spot up for grabs between Chris Woakes and Curran as Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes pick themselves up in the starting eleven. Curran believes that his chance lies in his hands and he will do his best to get his opportunity.
"I think anyone looking at the balance of the side can see that is pretty obvious. I think if I do get the chance, it is about nailing down my spot in the side and stop being the one that is vulnerable. That is my responsibility and whoever gets the spot, if it is me, has to take the opportunity by getting runs and taking wickets and contributing to the team. If I do get the nod, hopefully, I can go well and contribute with both bat and ball," Curran asserted.
Curran too like Archer will face the challenge of bowling with the Kookaburra ball for the first time in his career and he is looking forward to the Test series against New Zealand, hoping to make an impact whenever the team will require his services.
"I think any bowler who bowls with a Kookaburra is going to say they prefer the Dukes but you've got to learn somehow. We can't predict what the wicket is going to be like next week until we get up to the Mount and we'll come up with plans. It is a great learning curve for me, but I've made some strides in this game and come up with a few different options so I'm pretty confident," Curran concluded.
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