Alastair Cook hails Sam Curran, ‘class’ Jos Buttler after England level One-Day International series in West Indies

Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook has hailed the performances of all-rounder Sam Curran and captain Jos Buttler after England’s win over the West Indies in the second One-Day International to level the series on Wednesday.

Curran, in particular, stood out given the difficult year the Surrey man had endured. Following a starring role in England’s win at the T20 World Cup at the end of 2022, he was bought for a record INR 18.50 by the Punjab Kings.

However, he produced very disappointing returns, and although he started England’s World Cup campaign, he quickly lost his place.

Speaking as an analyst on TNT Sports, former England captain Cook said you could see the impact the wicket had on Curran’s confidence.

“His first three overs went for 18, so he was going at six an over,” he said. “It was Gus Atkinson at the other end who bowled better and set the tone.

“But once Sam Curran got that first wicket, and got going, you just saw a bowler who said yeah, I can do it again.

“He bowled so much tighter to the stumps, in the first game he was getting scored on on both sides of the wicket.

“When you’re not express pace like Sam Curran you’ve got to be naggingly accurate.

“Once he got his first couple of overs out the way and got his first wicket the next three or four overs were certainly back to the Sam Curran I know.”

Also sitting along Cook was former England bowler Steven Finn who explained the mentality of a bowler when you have been going for runs.

“I think when you’ve been smashing around a bit – and it happened to me a number of times in my career – you’re hit around and you just want to get back into the game and you want to overcome that anxiety as quick as you possibly can and that is either a wicket or bowling a few good balls and feeling the sting off the end of your fingertips.

“He got some good swing early in his spell but as soon as he got that wicket you could see he had a bit of zip on the ball, a bit more velocity.

“Certainly he grew in confidence after getting that first wicket and as a bowler it’s a lovely feeling to get back out there and feel the feeling of taking wickets and as if you’re helping the team.”

Cook also had high praise for Buttler after he reached another milestone, saying that longevity can often be the true mark of a great player.

“It’s a great milestone, shows his class and quality over a long period of time and that’s how you judge, longevity, if you have it then you know you’ve accomplished a very special thing because you’ve had to adapt to all conditions, different teams, fluctuations in form.

“And today just showed the quality he has, once he got past the first ten balls it was the Jos Buttler we know, we see and we love.

“And he’s the guy who’s responsible for a lot of England’s change in white-ball cricket. The ability he had to be the first real 360 batter.”

Finn agreed joking: “I was searching that feeling [on being in rhythm] for 18 years in my career and never found it.

“That ball makes a different sound off his bat. When he hits it, it stays it. It’s like a gunshot going off when it comes out of the middle of his bat.”