- Sam Curran, 27, was traded from Chennai Super Kings to Rajasthan Royals in one of the biggest deals in IPL history, arriving at RR for just Rs 2.4 crore as part of the blockbuster Sanju Samson swap
- The England all-rounder is now set to miss the entire IPL 2026 season due to a suspected groin injury, leaving the Rajasthan Royals scrambling before the tournament has even started
- Off the field, Sam got engaged to his longtime partner, actress Isabella Grace, in November 2025, making it a whirlwind few months for the cricketer on every front
The same man who was once the most expensive player in IPL history is now heading into IPL 2026 at a fraction of that price, with a new team, a new fiancée, and apparently, a broken body. Sam Curran’s life right now is a lot to keep up with, and yet, somehow, it just keeps getting more dramatic.
Let’s go back to the beginning, because this story has several layers worth knowing.
From Rs 7.2 Crore to Rs 18.5 Crore: The IPL Journey That Made Him a Record-Breaker
Sam Curran made his IPL debut in 2019 with the Punjab Kings, where he was bought for Rs 7.2 crore. He was raw, exciting, and clearly had something special. That debut season, he immediately stood out, picking 13 wickets and scoring 95 runs, and he also became the youngest player to take a hat-trick in IPL history. Not a bad way to introduce yourself to 1.4 billion cricket fans.
After stints with Chennai Super Kings and then back to Punjab Kings, Sam Curran arrived at the 2023 auction and rewrote the record books. Punjab Kings spent a staggering Rs 18.5 crore to bring him back, making him the most expensive player the IPL had ever seen, breaking the record previously held by South Africa’s Chris Morris, who had gone for Rs 16.5 crore. The bidding war was the kind of thing that makes you put your chai down and stare at the screen in disbelief.
He was also the first English cricketer to take an IPL hat-trick, and was adjudged Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup, which only added fuel to the fire of franchises fighting over him. At that point, Sam Curran was not just good. He was the most wanted cricketer in the world’s richest cricket league.
The Blockbuster Trade That Sent Everyone Into a Spin
Fast forward to November 2025, and everything changed again. Chennai Super Kings made a massive strategic move by trading Sam Curran and Ravindra Jadeja to Rajasthan Royals in exchange for Sanju Samson, in what became one of the biggest trade deals in IPL history. Think about that for a second. Two quality all-rounders went one way. One of India’s most beloved wicketkeeper-batters went the other way. It was the kind of deal that has fans and analysts still arguing about who actually won.
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Sam Curran moved to the Rajasthan Royals at his existing league fee of Rs 2.4 crore. RR would be his third IPL franchise, having previously represented Punjab Kings in 2019, 2023, and 2024, and CSK in between. The man who once fetched Rs 18.5 crore was now valued at Rs 2.4 crore in the trade structure. The numbers feel jarring, but that is just how the IPL salary retention system works. It does not make him any less of a player.
RR was expected to use him as a core player in powerplay and death overs, while also giving him a floating batting role in the middle order, with his arrival significantly boosting their all-round department. On paper, it looked brilliant. And then, the groin happened.
The Injury That Has Rajasthan Royals Holding Their Heads
Here is where it all falls apart, at least for now. Sam Curran is set to miss the entire IPL 2026 season with a suspected groin issue. He last played on March 5 in the 2026 T20 World Cup, where England lost to eventual champions India in the semi-final. So the man never even got a chance to pull on the Rajasthan Royals pink jersey in a competitive match.
Curran was set to play for RR for the first time after the franchise acquired him through the trade with CSK last November. They planned around him. They built combinations with him in mind. And now, before a single delivery has been bowled, he is sitting on the sidelines. For Rajasthan Royals fans, this one stings.
It is also just bad luck piled on top of bad luck. Back in IPL 2022, Sam Curran had already missed the entire season due to a stress fracture in his back, despite being bought by CSK for Rs 14 crore at that year’s auction. The guy knows how to make a dramatic entrance, and sometimes, also a dramatic exit, before the party even starts.
The All-Rounder Behind the Headlines: Who Sam Curran Really Is
Sam Curran was born on June 3, 1998, in Northampton. He is a left-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-seam bowler who has played 64 IPL matches, scoring 997 runs with six half-centuries, and his highest IPL score is 88.
He comes from a serious cricket family. Sam is the brother of England all-rounder Tom Curran and is also the son of Kevin Curran, a former cricketer for Zimbabwe. Cricket is not just a career in the Curran household. It is practically in the DNA.
His best bowling figures in the IPL are an impressive 4 for 11, and across his IPL career, he has been the kind of cricketer who can shift a game with bat or ball on any given day. He is not just a stats player. He is a momentum player, and any team that has him at full fitness knows exactly what they are getting.
The Fiancée, the Proposal, and the Life Off the Pitch
Amid all the trade drama and injury news, Sam Curran has also been making headlines for far more romantic reasons. Sam got engaged to his longtime girlfriend, Isabella Grace, and the couple announced the news on Instagram with a series of stunning photographs from the moment he got down on one knee.
Sam proposed on November 20, 2025, in a warm, intimate setting filled with candles and flowers. Isabella, dressed in a white jacket, was seen grinning as she showed off the ring. It is the kind of proposal that makes the internet collectively go “aww,” and rightfully so.
Isabella Grace is a screen and theatre actress based in London, with experience in contemporary and classical acting, musical theatre, dance-physical theatre, and improvisation. Her bio also describes her as a writer, artist, and designer. She is not someone who sits quietly in the background. She has built her own creative life entirely separate from cricket.
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The two have been together since 2018, and Isabella has often been spotted in the stands during IPL matches, cheering Sam on. That is seven years of supporting someone through record-breaking auction bids, injury heartbreak, franchise changes, and T20 World Cups. She has seen it all.
Sam Curran in 2026 is a man at a crossroads. He is 27, newly engaged, at a fresh franchise, carrying an injury, and staring at a season that will happen without him. But if his IPL journey has taught us anything, it is that he always finds his way back to the centre of the story. He was the most expensive player in IPL history once. He will be back on a cricket field soon enough, doing exactly what he does best.
Rajasthan Royals will just have to wait a little longer.