Fast bowler Tom Curran is looking forward to playing alongside England team-mates Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes at the Rajasthan Royals during this year's Indian Premier League.
Curran previously played for the Kolkata Knight Riders, but has since been recruited by the Royals, who have retained Stokes and Buttler. Rajasthan won the inaugural IPL in 2008 – and are priced at 10.00 by bet365 for a second title this year.
“It's an unbelievable standard at the IPL, so it's a great experience for me. These are sold-out games and it's proper loud. So it's mirroring as close to the biggest games on the international circuit, what they'll be like. It will be a great experience. If guys go there and do well, they'll take a lot of confidence from that. That's what it's all about,” said Curran.
“I'm really looking forward to it. I've already played a lot of cricket now with the guys there, so it makes it that much easier. Especially being somewhere like India, where it's a busy hectic schedule, to have those familiar faces there will be nice.”
Opposition for Curran
Curran will play with and against several international cricketers who will likely be involved in the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year, including Australia's Steven Smith and South Africa's David Warner, who are Royals recruits as well.
“I don't think you chat weaknesses with loads of people anyway. There's a few people who you might trust, and you might ask, ‘what does Steve do in this situation?' but it's more about developing and getting better, which we players focus more on,” he added.
“If I'm bowling in the nets to some of the Indian guys, I'm not going to be showing them all the tricks. But that's a huge benefit of having Jos, Stokes and these guys. I think you actually learn a lot too. Speaking to Jos I'll learn about batting. You just need to have some of the players on the international stage to talk to, and try things with.”
Former Australian all-rounder Andrew McDonald, meanwhile, has succeeded former head coach Paddy Upton at the Royals.
“I haven't worked with Andrew full-time but I have bumped into him. Nowadays you tend to bump into people and have conversations, so it will be a really good experience,” concluded Curran.
