Sam Curran Must Rise To The Occasion In Front Of His Home Supporters - Geoffrey Boycott

Legendary England batsman Geoffrey Boycott opined that Sam Curran needs to make a notable performance in the fourth Test against India, which will be played at the Kia Oval, home for the Surrey allrounder.

The 23-year-old has had a lackluster series so far – in three Tests, he has managed to score 74 runs at 18.50, including a king pair, and could eke out just 3 wickets at 79.33 each.

Geoffrey Boycott reckons Curran’s place is surely under threat; he could soon be ousted from the eleven as Chris Woakes has returned to the England squad, and Craig Overton was impressive with both bat and ball in England’s win in Leeds.

In his column for The Telegraph, Geoffrey Boycott wrote, “Sam Curran has been on the fringes of everything with not enough runs, not enough wickets and at some point he has to make an impact. Sam has got to grab his chance because once Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes are available getting selected will be much harder. He is playing on his home ground this week, in front of his home supporters and must rise to the occasion.”

Jos Buttler gets time to think about his batting because: Geoffrey Boycott

To Geoffrey Boycott, Jos Buttler hasn’t looked comfortable batting in the series so far. The wicketkeeper, who will miss the fourth Test due to the birth of his child, has scored only 72 runs at 14.40.

“Buttler’s batting was getting to be a problem. Now he is missing the fourth Test and it gives him time to think about his batting because when I watched him, he did not look comfortable taking strike.

“He made 72 runs from five innings and faced 190 balls. He should have made nearly 200 from those 190 balls because he is a natural free-scoring batsman, very positive with his strokes.

The former opener reckons Buttler’s footwork and self-confidence need pondering over, which he can do during his time off in the coming days.

“It always comes down to footwork and confidence. My advice to Jos is go away and work on moving your feet, dance and defend well early on so you can spend some time in the middle,” the 80-year-old stated.

Both the teams are likely to make changes in their pace bowling department, to give rest to their seamers and keep them fresh for the fifth Test.

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