IPL 2023 Auction: 3 Reasons Why Sam Curran Will Fetch More Price Than Ben Stokes

The IPL 2023 auction will be held in Kochi on December 23. A total of 991 players are set to go under the hammer in the upcoming auction. There are 714 Indian players and 277 overseas players in total. 21 players have registered themselves for a base price of 2 crores all of whom are overseas players. England Test skipper Ben Stokes and teammate Sam Curran are two among those 21 players.

Every franchise has a total salary cap of Rs. 95 crores in the auction. During the retentions, the 10 teams retained 163 players in their squad. Now, there are 87 slots available overall during IPL 2023 auction. SRH has the highest remaining purse with over 40 crores in their bank and KKR with 7.05 crores has the least purse remaining heading into the auction.

IPL 2023 | India tour of Bangladesh 2022 | Dream11 Prediction | Fantasy Cricket Tips | Cricket Match Prediction Today | Cricket News | Cricket Live Score

Ben Stokes and Sam Curran are two of England’s prime cricketers at the moment. Both of them had a big part to play in England’s T20 World Cup win. While Curran was the Player of the Tournament with 13 wickets from six games, Stokes scored an unbeaten 52 to win the title for his side.

Both of them are top-notch all-rounders and almost all the franchises would want both of them in their ranks. There are reports that Punjab Kings are aiming to buy both in the auction and have their strategies in place.

Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings who are looking to rebuild after a disappointing campaign last season might also have their eye on both the England players. RCB has a history of buying expensive players and will also be in the race.

IPL 2023 Auction | IND vs BAN 2022 | India vs Bangladesh 2022 | India National Cricket Team | IND vs SL 2023 | India vs Sri Lanka 2023 | IND vs NZ 2023 | India vs New Zealand 2023

In this article, we pick three reasons why Sam Curran might fetch more price than Ben Stokes in the auction.

IPL 2023 Auction: 3 Reasons Why Sam Curran Will Fetch More Price Than Ben Stokes

1) No Injury Concerns With Sam Curran Unlike Ben Stokes

Curran did not enter the IPL 2022 auction due to a lower back injury. However, heading into the IPL 2023, Curran is at the pink of his health and ready to play a full season. With Ben Stokes, there is always a risk of him getting injured. It happened with him in the very first match of IPL 2021.

He broke his finger while taking Chris Gayle’s catch as Rajasthan Royals played against Punjab Kings. Hamstring and calf injuries are also a constant with Stokes and thus the franchisees will be wary about buying the England Test captain at the auction.

Also Read: Updated ICC World Test Championship Points Table After Australia vs West Indies 2nd Test

2) Test Captaincy Might Hinder Ben Stokes From Playing A Full Season

England have eight Test matches lined up in 2023 starting with a two-Test match series against New Zealand in February. They play Ireland for a one-off Test series in June followed by the Ashes series against Australia in June-July. The ECB might want him to be fresh for the two key Test match series which makes him vulnerable to play a complete IPL season.

Stokes has constant niggles and thus the board might want him to use these two months to recoup and rehabilitate. Sam Curran is also a key player for England across formats. However, after missing IPL 2022, there are fewer chances that he might skip back-to-back IPL seasons, especially after a T20 World Cup win.

3) Sam Curran’s Recent Form In T20I Cricket With The Ball

Sam Curran has a golden arm in T20 cricket and thus is one of the key figures in the lineup. His all-round quality provides depth to the lineup and allows the side to play with an extra batter and a bowler. The southpaw is just fresh off his Man of the Series performance in the T20 World Cup. He took 13 wickets and bowled well across various phases of the game.

Franchises might be eager to use his all-round quality more than Ben Stokes who is more of a batting all-rounder. In the previous seasons, he provided key breakthroughs to CSK when he was a part of the side. He also scored crucial runs with the bat.

Also Read: IPL 2023: 5 Players That Gujarat Titans (GT) Can Use As Impact Players

Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah