Tom Curran has been drafted into England's ODI squad for their tour of the West Indies. The Surrey pace bowler is added as cover for Nottinghamshire counterpart Jake Ball, who limped out of a second warm-up match against the West Indian Cricket Board President's XI in St Kitts on Sunday (27 February) after experiencing pain in the back of his knee.

Curran, who was born in Cape Town and completed his residential qualification period in October 2015, was notified of his promotion while on England Lions duty alongside younger brother Sam, who was also thought of as a potentially strong candidate to back-up Ball. The 21-year-old claimed 10 wickets in two-four day matches against Sri Lanka A at an average of less than 19 and clearly caught the eye of the selectors.

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"I woke up about half past four and saw I had a message from [national selector] James Whitaker on my phone," the elder Curran explained after swapping Dambulla for the Caribbean.

"I thought I'd give it a quick read and he'd be saying well done on the series – and I wasn't thinking very clearly at that time in the morning. But then I saw the words West Indies – and I was awake then, to say the least.

"I read it a few times, couldn't quite come to grips with it, trying to pinch myself to wake up. Put it this way, I couldn't get back to sleep. So thanks again for the message James."

He added: "It's happened as quick as a text. I wasn't expecting it straight after the four-dayers. It's all pretty surreal right now. But I'm giddy, I can't wait to get out there."

Tom Curran
Tom Curran playing for England Lions

Having won their List A matches by 117 runs and two wickets respectively, England journey to Sir Vivian Richards Stadium on 3 March for the first of three ODI clashes against the West Indies. They will remain in Antigua for the second meeting two days later before heading to Barbados, where the series wraps up on 9 March.

The West Indies are due to travel to the United Kingdom in August for a near two-month tour that includes three Tests, one T20 international and five further ODI matches.

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