Tom Curran hopes fruitful BBL performance will boost ICC World Cup selection chances

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England all-rounder Tom Curran has expressed hope that his recent impressive show in the Big Bash League (BBL) will help him cement his place in the 15-man national squad for the 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in England and Wales. 

With Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, David Willey and Liam Plunket all being in the race for a berth in the England squad for the showpiece event, Curran is well aware that he needs to be at his absolute best and keep on gaining the national selectors' attention with good performances. 

Admitting that the tournaments like BBL help in making one's case strong for selection, the 23-year-old said that he is looking forward to continue performing well at Australia's T20 league and take that momentum in the World Cup. 

"It helps to play in those big franchise tournaments. It's the biggest stage apart from international cricket, so to go there and do well gives me confidence. Hopefully, from that I can put in some good performances here, and get in that World Cup squad," the ICC quoted Curran as saying. 

Curran, who is currently with the national squad for the five-match ODI series against West Indies from February 20, amassed a total of 20 wickets in 14 matches he has played for Sydney Sixers in BBL. 

To strengthen his chance for selection, Curran has also developed a number of deliveries to try besides also working specifically on the yorker in order to get an edge in the death overs during the BBL.

Reflecting on the same, he said, "You want to perform at the hardest moments; the crunch moments in the game. The yorker is the hardest ball to hit and one of the hardest to bowl. I've been trying to work on that constantly, keep nailing it and always trying to improve. It's going pretty well."

The 2019 ICC World Cup is slated to take place from May 30 to July 14, with England taking on South Africa in their opening match at the Oval.