Why is Sam Curran not playing today’s third ODI between England and Australia in Manchester?

Sam Curran not playing: The English all-rounder has been benched for the series decider despite an impressive performance in the last match.

During the third ODI of the ongoing Australia’s tour of England in Manchester, Australia have once again decided to rest premier batsman Steve Smith. The development means that the right-hand batsman won’t be able to take any part in the three-match ODI series in England.

Much like head coach Justin Langer, Australia captain Aaron Finch also opened up on Smith not being in the best of shapes when it comes to batting in the news before this match.

“He [Steve Smith] had a long hit and didn’t pull up well, just a bit groggy. We’ve been ultra-conservative and cautious,” Finch was quoted as saying about Smith during the toss.

Why is Sam Curran not playing today’s third ODI?

While Australia didn’t make any change to their squad from the previous ODI, hosts England have made a solitary change despite coming on the back of an emphatic victory.

It is worth mentioning that England have included fast bowler Mark Wood in place of Sam Curran for this match. Curran, who registered bowling figures of 9-0-35-3 in a praiseworthy spell in the last match, is surely unfortunate to sit out today.

Speaking during the toss, England captain Eoin Morgan considered the change to be a “tough call”. “We think it’s a good wicket, short boundary on one side. Mark Wood comes in for Sam Curran. Sam is extremely good, young, versatile all-rounder, hard to take,” Morgan said about Curran’s omission.

Sam Curran must quickly be becoming the most dropped England player of all time. Always plays well but rarely plays back to back games. Poor lad.

— Lewis Winter (@LewisAWinter) September 16, 2020

With the third ODI being played on a fresh wicket contrary to the second one, England have opted for the express pace of Wood in place of Curran’s medium-fast bowling to get more from the surface.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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