Cricket expert Aakash Chopra was surprised at Punjab Kings (PBKS) decision of retaining Sam Curran for a whopping INR 18.50 crore for the upcoming IPL 2024. To note, PBKS had purchased Sam Curran during the IPL 2022 Auction. The English all-rounder fetched a massive amount of INR 18.50 crore thanks to his antics in the 2022 T20 World Cup where he was adjudged player of the series.
“I was extremely surprised. Why did you retain Sam Curran? They have parked 18.50 crore rupees in one place. I won’t call him a non-performing asset, but a very expensive asset for sure. He was sold for 18.50 crore rupees because there were only three all-rounders in the small auction,” said Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel.
Chopra believes that PBKS should have released Curran, given his performance in the last season. Notably, the England all-rounder scored 276 runs in 14 matches in IPL 2023 at an average of 27.60 and a strike rate of 135.96, including a high score of 55. He also took 10 wickets but had an expensive economy rate of 10.22.
“However, if you see his performances in the last IPL, the SA20 now, or the last year, he hasn’t done anything special for the last 12-14 months. He just played well in the 2022 T20 World Cup and that too because the side boundaries were very big in Australia,” Chopra added.