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“He wishes to utilise this period to build endurance, body resilience and work on his fitness,” BCCI secretary says

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-20255:11

Aaron: If Iyer says he has back issue, you have to believe him

Shreyas Iyer has requested the BCCI for a six-month break from red-ball cricket due to concerns about his back, which the board has approved*. ESPNcricinfo learned that Iyer sent an email to the board to that effect and pulled out of the ongoing four-day match between India A and Australia A in Lucknow.Confirming the update on Thursday morning, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said in a press statement that Iyer “has informed the BCCI of his decision to take a six-month break from red-ball cricket”. “Having undergone back surgery in the UK and managed his recovery well, he has recently experienced recurring back spasms and stiffness while playing the longer format,” Saikia wrote. “He wishes to utilise this period to build endurance, body resilience and work on his fitness. In view of his decision, he was not considered for selection for the Irani Cup.”Iyer was the India A captain in the first four-day game against Australia A, but withdrew from the second. He was likely to have been picked in the Rest of India squad to play defending Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha in the Irani Cup, but will now miss that game.Before scoring 8 in his only innings against Australia A last week in Lucknow, Iyer had played the Duleep Trophy semi-final for West Zone against Central Zone in September at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence on the outskirts of Bengaluru. He made 25 and 12 in that outing, his first competitive match since the end of IPL 2025.Iyer had problems with his back in December 2022 and the injury flared up during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series at home in March 2023, after which he had surgery in April and missed the IPL that year. He returned for the Asia Cup in September and was a key part of India’s unbeaten run to the 2023 ODI World Cup final in November.He continued to have issues with his back, though, and skipped some first-class matches for Mumbai, as a result of which he was omitted from the BCCI’s central contracts list in February 2024. Iyer was back on the list of contracted players the following year. More recently, in February-March this year, Iyer was India’s highest run-getter (243 in five innings) and the second-highest run-getter overall in the run to the Champions Trophy title, after which he led Punjab Kings to the final of IPL 2025.

For the Los Angeles Dodgers, weaknesses do not stay weakness for very long.

The Dodgers are signing pitcher Edwin Díaz away from the Mets in an apparent bid to boost their bullpen, according to a Tuesday morning report from Will Sammon of . The deal is, per Ken Rosenthal, ESPN's Jeff Passan and Sammon, reportedly a three-year pact that will pay Diaz $69 million.

Díaz, 31, has spent six seasons with New York (excluding a 2023 lost to injury). Over the course of his tenure, he saved 144 games for the Mets—third in team history—after saving 109 in three years for the Mariners.

He was particularly effective in 2022, when he finished ninth in the National League Cy Young voting and 16th in the NL MVP voting (additionally, he helped turn his entrance music into a minor electronic hit). He also made the NL All-Star team in 2025.

Los Angeles' relievers lost 33 games last year—four above the league average—but the Dodgers won their second straight World Series title anyway.

Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson tied his team's contest against the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night with an RBI infield single … until he didn't.

Down 3–2 with a runner on third and two outs on the board, Swanson took the plate against Reds reliever Graham Ashcraft. Swinging on a full count, he sent a grounder down the left side where third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes picked it and threw to first—but not in time, allowing Willi Castro to score. Upon further review, however, it was determined that Swanson missed the first base entirely. He was called out, the run was wiped and Cincy maintained their lead.

Take a look at the mishap here:

Swanson's blunder ended up being a costly one. No runs were scored for the rest of the game, and the Reds came away with a 3–2 win—cutting into Chicago's lead atop the National League wild card race.

It'll take a while for the two-time All-Star to live this one down.

Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl lost for the second time in as many matches in charge of the club in the Europa League against Roma on Thursday night.

The Italian giants came to Ibrox and won 2-0 under the lights, thanks to two first-half strikes, to make it three defeats in five matches for the new Light Blues boss.

It is hard to blame the former Sheffield Wednesday tactician for that dismal start to his career at the club, though, as he has had a tough run of fixtures, including this clash with Roma and a League Cup semi-final against Celtic.

Rohl has inherited a team that struggled badly under former manager Russell Martin, who only won five matches in all competitions during his time in Glasgow.

However, the German boss does have a chance to make it three wins out of three in the Scottish Premiership when his side travel to play Dundee away from home on Sunday.

With that match in mind, the Ibrox head coach must ruthlessly ditch centre-forward Youssef Chermiti from the starting line-up after an underwhelming performance on Thursday night.

Why Youssef Chermiti should be dropped by Rangers

The £8m summer signing from Everton has now produced one goal and one assist in 12 appearances in all competitions for the Light Blues in the 2025/26 campaign.

His goal, as shown in the clip above, was aided by some fairly questionable goalkeeping, and his assist was a simple pass to Danilo, who took a brilliant touch and scored from the edge of the box.

The Portugal U21 international has not provided enough quality in the final third to justify his price tag, yet, and his performance against Roma did little to convince supporters that he has been a good addition to the squad.

Roma had Artem Dovbyk leading the line for them at Ibrox and the gulf in class between the Ukraine international and Chermiti in their respective displays was staggering.

Whilst the Serie A marksman, who scored 17 goals for Roma last season (Sofascore), provided the perfect foil for his team to build attacks from, Rangers could not rely on Chermiti to bring others into play.

As you can see in the table above, Dovbyk was almost perfect in possession and created four chances for his team on the night, including one for the second goal, whilst the Gers striker did not create any chances for his side and was a bit loose with his passes.

The former Everton forward also struggled in the 3-1 loss to Celtic at Hampden Park on Sunday. Pundit Michael Stewart bemoaned his “poor” finishing after the attacker spurned two huge opportunities to find the back of the net in the first half.

Therefore, Rohl should drop him from the starting line-up to take on Dundee in the Premiership on Sunday and unleash Danilo, who has scored in each of his last two appearances in the Premiership under the German head coach.

Chermiti is not the only underperforming Rangers player who should lose his place in the starting XI for that trip to Dundee before the international break, though.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

The former Bayern Munich and Southampton assistant manager should also ruthlessly ditch left-sided defender Jayden Meghoma from the side, after another disappointing showing.

Why Danny Rohl should drop Jayden Meghoma for Rangers

Rohl should drop the defender from the team after he decided to withdraw him from the game at half-time in order to change formation and move Max Aarons to left-back.

The Rangers head coach opted to move away from a 3-4-2-1 formation to chase the game with a 4-3-3, which meant that Aarons moved from right wing-back to left-back and James Tavernier moved from right centre-back to right-back.

Rohl deciding to move Aarons, who is a right-footed right-back, over to left-back instead of moving Meghoma back into a left-back position in a back four suggests that he was less-than-pleased with the Brentford loanee’s contributions in the first half.

As you can see in the table above, it is easy to understand why the manager may not have been too impressed by the wing-back’s first-half showing, as the 19-year-old flop failed to win a single duel.

Meghoma offered very little to the team in or out of possession in the opening 45 minutes, with no key passes, dribbles, tackles, interceptions, or duels won for the Scottish giants.

The Scotsman handed the youngster a player rating of 4/10 for his performance against Roma and wrote that he looked ‘out of his depth’ as an ‘untested’ youngster, which is hard to disagree with, given Rohl’s decision to withdraw him at half-time and his dismal statistics.

After the 3-1 loss to Celtic in the League Cup last weekend, Football FanCast suggested that the left-back may be on borrowed time in the starting XI because he was caught out defensively for the opening goal from Johnny Kenny, as shown in the clip below.

Meghoma was also caught out aerially from a set-piece in the 3-0 defeat to Brann in Rohl’s first match in charge, when he allowed Jacob Lungi Sorensen to get the run on him to score from a free-kick.

The teenage defender, who has won 25% of his aerial duels in the Premiership (Sofascore), has not proven that he can be a reliable option for the Light Blues at this moment in time, and the change at half-time on Thursday suggests that the manager trusts Aarons ahead of him in a back four.

Danny Rohl now orders Rangers to make three January signings, priority revealed

The new manager is looking to strengthen his squad considerably this winter.

By
Dominic Lund

Nov 5, 2025

Therefore, Rohl should ruthlessly ditch Meghoma and Chermiti in order to unleash Aarons at left-back in a back four and Danilo up front against Dundee on Sunday.

تحدث حمد المقبالي حارس مرمى منتخب الإمارات، عن التعادل مع منتخب مصر في بطولة كأس العرب 2025 اليوم السبت.

وتعادل منتخب مصر مع نظيره الإمارات بهدف لكل فريق في الجولة الثانية من دور المجموعات من بطولة كأس العرب.  وقال المقبالي، عبر قناة “بي إن سبورت”: “اليوم لم يحالفنا الحظ، سعينا وسجلنا، لكن الكرة لم تنصفنا اليوم، ونقطة أفضل من لا شيء”.

طالع | شيكابالا: أنتظر تكرار سيناريو الأرجنتين مع منتخب مصر في كأس العرب وتابع: “نقطة أمام المنتخب المصري الكبير والقوي جدًا والشرس في الملعب، وسنركز في مواجهة منتخب الكويت ونحصد بطاقة التأهل، وستكون مباراة نهائية”.

وسيلعب منتخب الإمارات في الجولة المقبلة أمام الكويت، فيما يلتقي منتخب مصر أمام الأردن.

أكد آرني سلوت، مدرب نادي ليفربول، أنه يريد بجانب لاعبي فريقه مصالحة جماهير الريدز، وذلك قبل مباراة سندرلاند بالدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ويعتقد سلوت في حديثه إلى موقع ليفربول الرسمي، أن الانتصار الذي حققه فريقه على وست هام يوم الأحد الماضي كان خطوة في الاتجاه الصحيح بالنسبة للريدز.

ليفربول سوف يستضيف نظيره سندرلاند مساء اليوم الأربعاء على ملعب آنفيلد، ضمن الجولة الـ14 من عمر الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز على ملعب آنفيلد.

ويسعى ليفربول لمواصلة صحوته بعد الانتصار على وست هام، والذي كسر سلسلة سلبية من الهزائم المتتالية لرجال سلوت.

وقال سلوت: “لن يحتاج أي شخص يحضر هذه المباراة إلى أن أخبره أن أدائنا الأخيرين أمام جماهيرنا لم يرق إلى المستوى المطلوب، دون أن أطيل الحديث عن تلك المباريات، من الواضح أن هذا أمر لا نريد تغييره فحسب بل نحن بحاجة إلى تغييره جذري”.

وأضاف: “كلمة مستوى أساسية في وضعنا الحالي، يتعلق الأمر بالمستوى الذي وضعناه لأنفسنا الموسم الماضي والتوقعات التي وضعها النادي لنفسه لسنوات عديدة سابقة، هذا لا يضمن دائمًا نتائج جيدة ولكنه بالتأكيد يعزز فرصنا في تحقيقها، هكذا كان الحال دائمًا وهو كذلك الآن بالتأكيد”.

وأوضح: “لهذا السبب كان فوز يوم الأحد على وست هام خطوة في الاتجاه الصحيح بعد هذه الفترة الصعبة، لم تكن أفضل مباراة خاضها فريق ليفربول على الإطلاق، ونعلم أن هناك حاجة إلى مزيد من التحسينات ولكن الأداء كان المطلوب في ظل هذه الظروف”.

أقرأ أيضًا .. فيرتز: سعيد بترك بصمتي أمام وست هام.. ولاعب ليفربول بارع

وأردف: “حافظنا على نظافة شباكنا، ولم نمنح أي فرصة حقيقية لوست هام باستثناء الدقيقة الأخيرة ، وبذل اللاعبون جهدًا كبيرًا من بداية المباراة وحتى صافرة النهاية، علاوة على ذلك، سجلنا هدفين رائعين منحانا المكافأة التي نستحقها في ذلك اليوم”.

وتابع: “هذه هي أبرز ما قدمناه كفريق وفوق كل ذلك، حظينا بدعم يحدث فرقًا كبيرًا في مثل هذه الأوقات، إلى كل من سافر إلى لندن ليقدم لنا هذا الدعم، لا يسعني إلا أن أشكركم جزيل الشكر”.

وواصل: “لقد مررنا جميعًا باختبار صعب في الأسابيع الأخيرة، ومع ذلك استطاع المشجعون تجاوز خيبة أملهم ودفعنا للأمام، كنت أعرف قبل قدومي إلى ليفربول أن جماهيرنا معروفة بهذا، لكن معايشة ذلك عن كثب أمر مميزٌ حقًا مع أنني كنت أتمنى ألا يكون ولاءكم قد خضع للاختبار كما حدث مؤخرًا”.

واستكمل: “في الشوط الأول من المباراة ضد وست هام سمعت هتاف الأبطال من جانب الفريق الضيف في أكثر من مناسبة، وقد جسد هذا الهتاف روح التحدي التي سنظل بحاجة إليها في الأيام والأسابيع القادمة”.

وقال: ”نعم، أعلم أن هذه الأغنية تغنى بدافع الفخر لما حققناه معًا في الموسم الماضي، لكنها في هذه الفترة تكتسب معنىً إضافيًا بالنسبة لي ، معنى ذكرنا بهويتنا وما نؤمن به”.

وأضاف: ”ليس من قبيل الصدفة بالنسبة لي أن هذا النوع من التحدي في المدرجات لاقى صدى في الملعب، في لحظة عصيبة وقفنا جميعًا معًا وقاتلنا من أجل ليفربول، هذه الروح قادرة على المضي قدمًا، حتى بعد فترة سأكون أول من يعترف بأنها لم تكن كافية”.

وأوضح: ”التحدي الآن هو البناء على هذا الفوز، لا يمكننا أن نصدق أننا تجاوزنا مرحلة صعبة أو أن التعافي قادم، علينا أن نبقى متواضعين وأن نعمل بجد وأن نواصل الكفاح، إذا فعلنا ذلك، فربما نتمكن من مواصلة اتخاذ الخطوات الصغيرة للأمام وهي خطوات ضرورية للغاية”.

وأردف سلوت في حديثه: ”أود أن أرحب بريجيس لو بري ولاعبيه وجهازه الفني بالإضافة إلى جماهير سندرلاند ومجلس إدارته، في ملعب أنفيلد لمباراة الليلة، إن ما قدموه في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز هذا الموسم يعكس بشكل إيجابي للغاية أداء جميع أفراد النادي بعد صعودهم إلى الدوري الممتاز في مايو الماضي”.

وتابع: ”أكد فوز سندرلاند على بورنموث يوم السبت على العديد من الصفات التي لا تزال تميزهم في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، نتوقع منهم أن يصلوا بثقة عالية وعزم على تعزيز سمعتهم”.

واختتم سلوت: ”علينا أن نكون مستعدين وأن نظهر رغبتنا في تحسين وضعنا الحالي، إذا تمكنا من تحقيق ذلك فسنرى إلى أين سيقودنا”.

Robert Lewandowski claimed Barcelona are now even 'stronger' after making a long-awaited return to their iconic Camp Nou home with a 4-0 thrashing of Athletic Club. The Polish forward opened the scoring early in the game before Ferran Torres grabbed a brace and Fermin Lopez netted for the Blaugrana as they kept up the defence of their La Liga title.

• Dream return to Camp Nou

  Barcelona returned to Camp Nou on Saturday after a two-year exile due to the renovation of the venue. Hansi Flick's side marked the comeback to the iconic stadium with a memorable 4-0 win over Athletic Club in La Liga. Lewandowski scored the opening goal in the fourth minute before Torres doubled the team's lead at the stroke of half-time.

  Shortly after the break, Lopez added a third goal before Torres completed the demolition with a second strike in the 90th minute to seal important three points for the Blaugrana. 

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  'We're a slightly stronger team'

  Speaking to after the match, Lewandowski said: "We were returning to Camp Nou, and it was a special day for us. We're very happy to be able to play here. From the beginning, we played very well, scoring two goals in the first half and another two in the second. We added three more points, although the most important thing is that we're back here. Simply because it's a different experience when we play here."

  He added: "We were determined to attack from the start. So it felt special to score the first goal. I'm very proud. We have a very good team and now we have to look ahead. When we play at Camp Nou, we're a slightly stronger team."

• Williams faced hostility

  Nico Williams was strongly linked with a move to Barcelona in the summer transfer window until he decided against signing for the Catalan giants at the last moment and signed a new contract at Athletic Club. Thus, Barcelona fans were naturally angry at the Spain international winger as he faced hostility from the home crowd during the game.

  At full-time, Williams' team-mate Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta told reporters: "I was expecting this atmosphere, and I saw him calm. We’re gutted. We knew we had to do everything perfectly and that they had to have an off day. We have to pick ourselves up quickly because we have a game on Tuesday. Any mistake is punished against players of that calibre, even more so. Missing any game is a real bummer, and I’m gutted about it."

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  Why did Rashford miss Athletic Club clash?

  Rashford has reinvented himself under Flick at Barcelona after being frozen out at Manchester United under head coach Ruben Amorim. The England international move to the Catalan side in the summer transfer window on a one-year loan with an option to buy him permanently next season. Rashford has made a dream start to his journey with Barca and has also returned to the national team set-up.

  Unfortunately for Barcelona, he was ruled out of the clash at Camp Nou on Saturday after catching the flu. The official statement from the club read: "Marcus Rashford will miss today’s match against Athletic Club due to [the] flu."

  Flick will now hope that Rashford recovers quickly and is well enough for the trip to Chelsea on Tuesday in the Champions League and for their home La Liga encounter with Alaves next Saturday.

As Shohei Ohtani gears up to once again represent Team Japan in the 2026 World Baseball Classic to help the country defend its title, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hopes the reigning National League MVP isn't planning on reprising his role as a two-way player for his home country.

“I don't,” Roberts told reporters on Monday at the winter meetings when asked if he knew if Ohtani would pitch in the WBC. “I'm hoping he doesn't. But I don't know. Shohei is very in tune with his body, but I would say probably, the thought is, he's probably just going to hit, but I really don't know.”

When Ohtani last played in the World Baseball Classic in 2023, it was as a two-way player, and he was his usual impactful self. In seven games, Ohtani posted a robust .435/.606/.739 slash line with one home run, eight RBIs and 10 walks. As a pitcher, Ohtani worked 9 2/3 innings—two games started and one contest in relief—pitching to a 1.86 ERA with 11 strikeouts. Along with then-Angels teammate Mike Trout, Ohtani provided baseball fans with peak theater when he struck out Trout, the tying run for Team USA in the top of the ninth inning, after an epic, six-pitch at-bat.

Unfortunately, later that September, Ohtani was forced to undergo surgery on his throwing elbow—and he would not return to the mound until the 2025 season with the Dodgers, who carefully managed his workload upon his return in June up until the postseason. And for Roberts, the less wear-and-tear on Ohtani's arm the better, especially with the Dodgers eyeing a three-peat in 2026.

Plus, it's not just Ohtani that Roberts is cautious about, but also Ohtani's fellow countrymen Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki, each of whom is a good bet to once again represent Team Japan in the WBC come March.

“I think there's no more clarity for us,” Roberts said. “Obviously, it's something that they both are excited about potentially. Obviously, the country of Japan [is] excited. We have to have that conversation. I would like to think that it's going to be a dialogue as far as restrictions and limitations, in the sense of just trying to give them the opportunity.

“But also understand they've come off some stuff, some long seasons, and certainly with Yamamoto and looking out for 2026. But right now, there's no more clarity than we had before.”

The Dodgers are paying the trio of Ohtani, Yamamoto and Sasaki, each of whom played a pivotal role in the club's 2025 title defense, over $1 billion. It's understandable that they'd be cautious with each of their workloads.

Pool play in the WBC begins on March 5.

ESPNcricinfo looks back at some of Rohit Sharma’s best innings in ICC knockouts

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Mar-2025

30*(16) vs Pakistan

2007 T20 World Cup final, JohannesburgIn just his sixth international, a 20-year-old Rohit gave India a big finish after they chose to bat in the final of the inaugural T20 World Cup. Coming in at No. 6, he hit two fours, a six and four twos to ensure 27 came off the final two overs and India’s total was 157.Rohit Sharma gave a glimpse of his attacking batting as early as in his sixth international – at the T20 World Cup 2007•AFP

137(126) vs Bangladesh

2015 ODI World Cup quarter-final, MelbourneWickets through the middle overs slowed India’s scoring, and Rohit’s job was to bat deep as they aimed to build a big total that would take them through to the semi-final. On 90, Rohit was caught off a waist-high full toss that was called a no-ball, an incident that led to a furore in Bangladesh. From that point on, Rohit blasted 47 off 25, playing some exquisite shots, and India got to 302, a winning total.

123*(129) vs Bangladesh

2017 Champions Trophy semi-final, BirminghamWith India chasing 265, Rohit put on an exhibition, hitting 16 boundaries in his century and building a 178-run stand with Virat Kohli that took India home with nine wickets in the bag.

47(29) vs New Zealand

2023 ODI World Cup semi-final, MumbaiKohli’s 50th hundred headlined the day, but by the time he was in, a significant amount of the pressure on India had been relieved by Rohit’s whirlwind start. In their semi-final losses in the 2019 ODI World Cup and the 2022 T20 World Cup, India had made poor starts. Here, Rohit blasted four sixes early to make sure India were scoring at nine an over in the first powerplay.Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma added an unbroken 178 for the second wicket in the Champions Trophy 2017 semi-final•Getty Images

47(31) vs Australia

2023 ODI World Cup final, AhmedabadIn the final, with India put in, Rohit was off early. It was only Travis Head’s brilliance in the field that stopped his onslaught. Once he was out, India slowed down dramatically and ended up short of a winning total.

57(39) vs England

2024 T20 World Cup semi-final, GuyanaAgainst the same team they had stumbled in at the 2022 T20 World Cup, India lost the early wickets of Kohli and Rishabh Pant. With history weighing on him, Rohit embodied the bravery he had beseeched his team to have and continued to play his shots on a challenging track. His innings set the base for India to reach 171, which was more than enough on the surface.

76(83) vs New Zealand

2025 Champions Trophy final, DubaiWhile he had not registered a fifty in the tournament, Rohit had maintained his attacking intent throughout. In the final, with his side chasing 252, he laid down the marker for India’s approach by pulling the second ball of the innings for six. More boundaries followed off the seamers, and Rohit rotated well against the spinners, ensuring that even as India lost wickets in the middle, the asking rate never became daunting.

Allrounder reveals details of phone call with Brendon McCullum as he plots international recall

Matt Roller05-Feb-2025Player of the tournament in a World Cup win. More than 100 England caps across all formats. Back-to-back Hundred trophies, one as MVP. Million-dollar IPL contracts. A walk-on role in a County Championship three-peat. At 26, Sam Curran has already achieved more than most cricketers manage across their lifetime.Yet as he heads towards the peak years of most sporting careers, Curran is experiencing a lull: for the first time since he burst into international cricket nearly seven years ago, he finds himself outside of England’s squads in all three formats. There is little doubt that he will be back at some stage, but life on the fringes brings an uneasy novelty.Curran has kept his head down since he was left out of England’s white-ball squads for their tour to India and the subsequent Champions Trophy, with his focus on the ILT20 in the UAE. But he has decided the time is now right to address it, telling ESPNcricinfo from Dubai that he will be “banging the door” down until he is back in the international set-up.Related

Sam Curran added to England T20I squads as Ben Duckett takes break

England blown to bits-and-pieces as part-timers' bowling strategy backfires

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Why England should back Curran for T20I middle-order spot

Curran bounces back to give England title-winning edge

“There were loads of different reasons I didn’t get picked,” Curran says. “More so the T20s, but I naturally felt I should have been in both teams. But they’ve obviously got their plans and you can look at the way they’re lining up now… The 50-over side is going to be similar to the T20 line-up, and they wanted the same structure of the top six.”At the time of his omission, Curran spoke to Brendon McCullum – whom he is yet to play under – and valued the clarity he received. “He just said: ‘You’re not in right now, but go away, score runs and take wickets.’ I respected it a lot: sometimes you just get the easy: ‘It’s not the end.’ But it was pretty clear what they wanted me to do.”Yet there is a sense that McCullum might consider his style of bowling – left-arm swing rather than seam, and speeds closer to 80mph than 90mph – an awkward fit in his England teams. His first white-ball squads contained a battery of right-arm quicks, and he overlooked Curran last summer when Ben Stokes’ hamstring tear had seemed to open up a return to the Test side.It prompted Curran to reveal his fear that he no longer “fit the mould” that England were looking for – less through his personality than his physical attributes. With McCullum in charge across formats and making abundantly clear that his preference is for a level of convergence in selection, the route back is unlikely to be entirely straightforward.But England’s 4-1 defeat to India served to highlight the value of variety in any T20 side, however expensive Curran has proved in the past two years. It means that twelve months out from another T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, the unlikely star of England’s 2022 triumph is confident that he can force his way into the side.Curran says England’s 2022 T20 World Cup win “feels quite a while ago”•AFP/Getty Images”Everyone knows things can change quickly,” Curran says. “I’m the type of guy that will go away and do well and improve. It was just a case of them going with the top six they want, and backing the five bowlers they’ve chosen. [McCullum] told me to keep banging the door down and I feel like I’ve come here and done pretty well. I’m in a good headspace.”Curran has taken the setback as well as could be hoped but the two years since England’s T20 World Cup win have not been without their challenges. He was dropped early in their disastrous defence of the 50-over World Cup and his form has oscillated between extremes – as is the case for most players whose calendars are dominated by T20.”It feels quite a while ago,” he reflects on England’s win in Australia. “There were some tough times for the team [after that]. It’s just been inconsistency, being in and out a lot of the time. That was the big message from above: go away and show consistency. I feel like hopefully I’ve done that, and will keep doing that.”

“I’m driven by winning trophies… If I can finish the tournament with loads of runs, a lot of wickets and winning a trophy, I feel that’s all I can really do”Sam Curran on playing in the ILT20

Curran is playing for Desert Vipers, Avram Glazer’s franchise, in the ILT20 and his performances helped them finish top of the group stages. He has taken six wickets with the ball but his main role has been with the bat: used in his preferred role at No. 4, he is their second-highest run-scorer and has walked off unbeaten in three successful run chases.Curran’s batting record in T20 internationals makes for ugly reading – an average of 14.24 and a strike rate of 124.47 – and it is increasingly clear that England have used him out of position. He has had no impact when used as a finisher but can control an innings from the middle order: his only T20 half-century for England came in his only innings at No. 4.If McCullum continues to favour high pace, consistent run-scoring may yet be the best way to get noticed. With England’s middle order struggling badly against spin, Curran’s status as a left-hander should play in his favour: he could feasibly be used as the one lower-tempo batter in a line-up of power-hitters, as Ben Stokes was during their 2022 success.Consolation came through the identity of the winning bidders: Chennai Super Kings, his old team. “I was buzzing,” Curran says, laughing off the significance of the price tag. “Chennai was where I kickstarted my IPL career. As soon as I was picked up, I had 10-15 messages from people who were there four years ago.”He will finally get to experience their home crowd this year, with his previous stints coinciding with Covid-enforced neutral venues. “I’ve played there as the away team, and you see the love for the players. It also helps when you have the habit of winning and great consistency with [Stephen] Fleming and those guys who have been there since the start.”A short break in the meantime will allow Curran a rare opportunity to take stock, and to keep his career in perspective. “Cricket – especially T20, let’s be honest – is very fickle,” he says. “You can get a good ball, or two bad ones, and it goes the other way: that’s what happens in T20. But for now, I’ve just got to keep banging the door down.”