Former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star AB de Villiers believes that England all-rounder Sam Curran has been getting an extra amount of money in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the past few years. He said that it would’ve been good had Punjab Kings released him.
England all-rounder Sam Curran has been one of the hot picks in the last few auctions. Whenever he has entered the event, he has earned big bucks. But it is fair to say that his performances haven’t justified his price tag as he has been quite expensive with the ball and also hasn’t batted well as was expected of him.
Sam Curran ahead of the IPL 2023 was acquired by the Punjab Kings for the hefty amount of INR 18.5 crore, which at that time was the costliest player. The all-rounder, however, didn’t have a great season and was also trolled a lot for the kind of performances that he put in the league.
In the 14 matches that he played last season, Sam Curran picked just 10 wickets and was expensive as well. The all-rounder couldn’t set the stage on fire with the bat as he managed just 276 runs. But despite that, he was retained by the franchise for the upcoming edition.
During a Q&A session on his YouTube channel, AB de Villiers was asked if PBKS should’ve released Sam Curran ahead of the IPL 2024. Replying to that, he highlighted the all-rounder’s below-par performances in the last few seasons.
AB de Villiers admitted that although Sam Curran can turn around things, he’s overpaid in the IPL. He said that it would’ve been a good move had PBKS released him as it would’ve expanded the fund for them. He explained:
“I don’t like to be controversial. But, in my opinion, he’s been overpaid for quite a few years now. He’s not a bad player; I like him. He’s had a fantastic World Cup, but that’s quite a few years back. I don’t think he’s had a very good IPL recently. Also, for England, he hasn’t played exceptionally well
“He can turn things around like most world-class players can. Nothing against Sam Curran. I still think he’s a wonderful player. I just think he’s been overpaid for a few years. Maybe it would have been a good move for them to let him go to open up some funds to buy different players.”
Overall, Sam Curran has played 46 matches in his IPL. He has picked 42 wickets at an average of 35.33 and an economy rate of 9.52. Apart from that he also has scored 613 runs at a strike rate of 143.22.
IPL 2024: I don’t think that’s being overpaid – AB de Villiers on Harshal Patel
Punjab Kings had a decent outing in the IPL 2024 auction. They brought some game changers in the team with Indian pacer Harshal Patel being the costliest for them. They brought the fast bowler for INR 11.75 crore.
AB de Villiers shared his verdict on the same and said that Harshal Patel is a nifty pick for Punjab Kings and isn’t overpaid. De Villiers hailed him as a fantastic player and also pointed out that he can contribute with the ball. He explained:
“Harshal going for a pretty nifty ₹11.75 crore. I don’t think that’s being overpaid. He’s a fantastic player. He is a wonderful T20 cricketer. He can also hit the cricket ball. The slower ball that he bowls bamboozles a lot of batters.”
Apart from Harshal Patel, Punjab Kings brought Chris Woakes, Ashutosh Sharma, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Shashank Singh, Tanay Thyagarajann, Prince Choudhary, and Rilee Rossouw.
