IPL 2026 | ‘We were told he had a season-ending injury’: Kumar Sangakkara calls out Curran over play-off absence

Riyan Parag, Kumar Sangakkara and Sam Curran (Image credit: Agencies) TimesofIndia.com in Mullanpur: Rajasthan Royals (RR) director of cricket and head coach Kumar Sangakkara on Friday did not hold back, questioning Sam Curran’s absence from the play-offs after the England all-rounder was ruled out with a “season-ending” groin injury, but he started for Surrey in three Vitality Blast matches.The England all-rounder moved from Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to RR last November in a deal that included Sanju Samson and Ravindra Jadeja.“They told us Sam Curran had a season-ending injury but I think I’ve seen him play two or three games for Surrey now, so it was disappointing,” he told reporters after RR crashed out of IPL 2026 with a seven-wicket Qualifier 2 loss to Gujarat Titans.“We would have liked him to play for us, but after being informed in time, we got Dasun Shanak as a replacement.”Curran has played three matches for Surrey, scoring 141 runs, but the all-rounder is yet to lose a single in the competition.Sangakkara also questioned Curran’s commitment, citing examples of several players not getting much game time, but admitted that the unavailability of players affects the IPL.“A proper and strict policy around it is always a requirement. BCCI has a strict policy on it. Every player goes through injuries and if it’s a serious injury, a season-ending injury, of course we understand that,” he said.“We’ve had quite a few injuries. We’ve also had players like Adam Milne and Hetmyer come in and not have many games. Lhuan-dre Pretorius is another one.“Kwenna Maphaka is another one. They’ve been here. They’ve done the hard yards. They’ve trained. They’ve carried the team’s water and really worked as hard as anyone to support the team on this journey. It’s really up to the individual player to decide whether he wants to come or not.”“But I think BCCI’s policy around it is very strict now and should continue to be so to ensure that contractual obligations are properly and truly met. I think every side of the IPL will benefit from that,” he added.Before the start of IPL 2026, in an interview with BBC, Curran said that he was carrying the injury from the 2026 T20 World Cup.“It’s an injury that I’ve been kind of struggling with. It’s been getting worse over time. It was a big disappointment to miss the IPL,” he said.Curran was bought by CSK for Rs 2.4 crore for IPL 2025, finishing with 114 runs and just one wicket in five games. It will be interesting to see if the English all-rounder is retained by RR for next season.