Tom Curran hails “unbelievable win” as hat-trick inspires Surrey to first T20 Blast victory

NICK FRIEND: The seamer was in prime form at The Oval as he ripped through Glamorgan’s top order, taking a hat-trick in the second over of the visitors’ innings that all but saw his side to a first T20 Blast victory of the season

Tom Curran confessed he was thrilled just to be playing cricket again after being restricted to a watching brief in England’s World Cup win.

Th 24-year-old, who was a member of the 15-man squad that secured his country’s maiden global 50-over crown, was one of two players – along with Liam Dawson – who did not feature in the six-week competition.

However, the seamer was in prime form at The Oval as he ripped through Glamorgan’s top order, taking a hat-trick in the second over of the visitors’ innings that all but saw his side to a first T20 Blast victory of the season.

“It’s an unbelievable win, and what a time to do it,” he said. “In front of a brilliant crowd and a full house here at The Oval.”

The 97-run win marked the county’s first ever T20 success over the Welsh side at their south London home, while Glamorgan racked up the lowest total in English domestic T20 history – a score that hinged on Curran’s decisive contribution.

After clean-bowling David Lloyd, he enticed Colin Ingram and Billy Root to edge to slip, with Rikki Clarke taking almost identical catches.

“At halfway we had to believe we had a defendable total and we knew early wickets were the key,” he explained.

“Jade Dernbach set the tone with a superb opening over and then I came on and managed to get three. The crowd were going mad and it was an unbelievable moment getting the hat-trick. I felt a bit knackered though after running all that way in celebration!

“I think we bowled really well as a team tonight - Imran Tahir is world-class and he’s going to be a big weapon for us in this competition.

“Having started with two defeats we needed a win but if we get on a roll we will be hard to stop because we have a strong team.

“It was a frustrating time throughout the World Cup where obviously I’d have liked to have been playing. As a sportsman, you want to be playing. But at the same time, to be part of something so much bigger than that and that World Cup-winning squad was humbling and was a great experience.”

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