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Sam Curran was ruled out of IPL 2026 due to a groin injury. Rajasthan Royals (RR) later replaced him with Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka.
England's Sam Curran bowls a delivery during an ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 cricket match between England and West Indies, at the Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (PTI Photo/Kunal Patil)(PTI03_11_2026_000280B)(PTI)England all-rounder Sam Curran has said that he is disappointed to miss the ongoing IPL 2026 season due to an injury. Curran was supposed to play for Rajasthan Royals (RR) after being traded to the Riyan Parag-led side from Chennai Super Kings (CSK) ahead of IPL 2026. (IPL 2026 points table)
However, a groin injury that he sustained recently forced him to pull out of IPL 2026. He revealed that he has been battling the injury for a significant amount of time, but it gradually started getting worse.
Sam Curran last played in the 2026 T20 World Cup semi-final against India in Mumbai on 5 March.
Sam Curran on his groin injury
“It's an injury that I've kind of been battling with a little bit. It has gradually got fractionally worse. I went for a couple of scans, and it showed reasonable damage, so I had to make the tough decision. It was hindering me quite a bit,” Curran told the BBC.
“To miss the IPL was very disappointing, and now I guess I just have a rehab block of trying to get strong and fit for whenever it feels right,” Curran, who was acquired by RR for ₹2.40 crore from CSK, added.
Rajasthan Royals later announced the signing of Sri Lanka T20I captain Dasun Shanaka for ₹2 crore. Shanaka will replace Curran in the Rajasthan Royals squad.
Curran did not specify a return date from his injury. He is unlikely to play for his county side Surrey anytime soon, and is also not sure he would be able to lead the side in the 2026 T20 Blast, that starts from 22 May. “It's all going to come down to symptoms. It is obviously still a way off from that,” he said.
The 27-year-old added that it will not be easy to watch the IPL on the sidelines. “I guess it is probably my first time to do a bit of rehab now back in England; it will be tough to watch the IPL because I know that I'd like to have been there, but injuries are part of sport,” stated Curran.
Rajasthan Royals' IPL 2026 opener
Rajasthan Royals will begin their IPL 2026 season with a home game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Guwahati on Monday.
Apart from Curran, Ravindra Jadeja also made a trade move from CSK to RR, whereas Sanju Samson went the other way as he gears up for a new chapter with Chennai Super Kings.
Both RR and CSK failed to qualify for the IPL playoffs in 2025. While RR finished in ninth place with eight points, CSK finished in 10th place with the same number of points, with only Net Run Rate (NRR) seperating the two teams.
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