The Sports Guru
Sam Curran has put his hand up for the vacancy nobody knows how to fill. This looks at the Surrey all-rounder's pitch to replace Ben Stokes in England's Test side: the five years since his last cap, the groin injury that has left him with thirteen competitive overs to his name, and whether wanting the job is anywhere near the same thing as being ready for it when Pakistan arrive at Headingley in August.
Asked the direct question, Sam Curran gave the direct answer. Would he take on the all-rounder role that Ben Stokes vacated when he retired from international cricket? "Yeah, of course," Curran said, a competitive cricketer declining to pretend otherwise. There is no shame in wanting it. Every player who has ever pulled on an England shirt would say the same. The harder question, the one Curran cannot answer on his own, is whether the England he wants to rejoin actually needs the player he currently is.
The willingness was never in doubt
Curran, 28, was careful not to talk himself into a corner. "Stokesy's going to be a big gap to fill for whoever takes that role," he said, before adding that he loves playing for England and would try his best with whatever comes his way. It is the correct register for a man whose selection is far from guaranteed: eager without being presumptuous. He also acknowledged the volume of speculation swirling around the vacancy, and made a point of not adding to the weight on his own shoulders, saying his focus was simply to contribute and help win games rather than to anoint himself the successor. Sensible, that. Stokes was not replaced so much as succeeded, and nobody benefits from a candidate declaring himself the answer before the selectors have finished asking the question.
Five years is a long time to wait
The romance of the story runs into arithmetic fairly quickly. It has been five years since Curran won the last of his 24 Test caps, and the record he left behind is honest rather than commanding: 47 wickets at 35.51 with the ball, a batting average of 24.69. He was player of the series against India back in 2018, a 20-year-old left-armer who swung it both ways and batted with the fearlessness of someone who had not yet learned to be scared. That version of Curran was a genuine prospect. The version England would be recalling is a more experienced, more knowing cricketer, but one whose Test numbers have never quite matched the theatre of his best days.
The fitness question hanging over it all
Here is the sticking point. Curran only returned to bowling fitness last month, having missed the IPL with a groin injury, and he has bowled just 13 competitive overs since. He is currently in the thick of the white-ball schedule, involved in the T20 series against India, which is the sort of cricket that keeps a bowler ticking over without ever asking him to send down twenty overs in a day on an unresponsive pitch. More to the point, he is not scheduled to play another red-ball game before England's Test series against Pakistan begins on 19 August at Headingley. Wanting to replace Stokes is one thing. Doing it, with a rebuilt groin and no four-day cricket in the legs, is a rather sterner ask.
What England actually need
The vacancy is not only a bowling slot or a batting slot. Stokes gave England balance, the luxury of a fifth bowler who could also rescue an innings, and that is the specific shape of the hole. Curran can theoretically provide it, which is his strongest argument. But England have other conversations running in parallel: Harry Brook and Joe Root are the names floated for the captaincy, and James Coles offers an alternative if the selectors decide a spin-bowling all-rounder better suits their plans. Curran is competing not just against other players but against a whole idea of what the post-Stokes side should look like. That is a difficult brief for a man who has spent five years on the outside.
Verdict: a willing candidate, an unproven case
None of this is Curran's fault, and none of it should be held against him. He was asked whether he wanted the role and he answered like a competitor, which is exactly what you would want. The problem is that the case for him rests almost entirely on what he might offer rather than what he has recently done, and 13 overs is not much of a foundation for a Test recall against a Pakistan attack at Headingley. England left a bruising New Zealand series with more questions than answers, and this is one of them. Curran wants the opportunity. Whether he gets it will depend less on his enthusiasm and more on whether he can get enough red-ball cricket into his body before August to make the gamble look like a plan rather than a hope.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Asked directly whether he wanted the all-rounder role left vacant by Ben Stokes's retirement, Curran said "yeah, of course", while stressing that Stokes leaves "a big gap to fill for whoever takes that role". He was careful not to declare himself the answer, saying his focus was on contributing and helping England win games rather than on anointing himself Stokes's successor.
Curran, 28, has played 24 Test matches for England, taking 47 wickets at an average of 35.51 and averaging 24.69 with the bat. He was named player of the series against India in 2018 as a 20-year-old. It has been five years since he won the last of those 24 caps, so any recall would follow a long absence from the red-ball side.
His fitness is the main complication. Curran only returned to bowling last month after missing the IPL with a groin injury and has bowled just 13 competitive overs since. He is currently playing in the T20 series against India and is not scheduled to feature in another red-ball match before England's Test series against Pakistan starts on 19 August at Headingley.
England are weighing several options. Harry Brook and Joe Root have been mentioned as candidates for the captaincy Stokes also vacated, while James Coles offers an alternative if the selectors prefer a spin-bowling all-rounder to balance the side. Curran's pitch is that he can provide the seam-bowling all-rounder balance Stokes offered, but he is one of a number of names in the conversation.
Sources: Sam Curran's comments on wanting to fill the all-rounder role vacated by Ben Stokes, his direct quotes, his Test record (24 caps, 47 wickets at 35.51, batting average 24.69, 2018 player of the series against India), his age, the groin injury and 13 competitive overs since his return, his involvement in the T20 series against India and lack of red-ball cricket before the Pakistan Test, the 19 August Headingley start date, the circumstances of Stokes's retirement at Trent Bridge during England's 2-1 series defeat by New Zealand, and the Harry Brook, Joe Root and James Coles selection context, as reported by BBC Sport and corroborated across the PA news agency wire (Arab News, ESPNcricinfo) and Sky Sports.
