England’s national selector Ed Smith has granted 10 Test contracts and 13 white-ball deals for the year commencing October 1.

For Curran, the Surrey youngster, it rounds off an incredible breakthrough summer in international cricket after being named Player of the Series for the home side after the five-match event against India.

[caption id=”attachment_79719″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Sam Curran backed up his 78 in the fourth Test with the crucial wicket of Virat Kohli[/caption]

Despite being dropped for the third Test, the 20-year-old averaged 38.85 with the bat and took 11 wickets at 23.54. He has since been included in England’s tour party to Sri Lanka for both the Test series and the ODIs, with his brother Tom also included in the latter, who has received an incremental deal.

Jennings, meanwhile, only averaged 18 against India, and with Alastair Cook’s retirement to boot, the opening slots – perhaps even the top three – are a real cause for concern for Smith.

[caption id=”attachment_80577″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Jennings endured a tough series against India[/caption]

Augmenting Smith’s reputation as one unafraid to make bold decisions, the former England and Middlesex batsman has continued to back Jos Buttler and Adil Rashid, whose recalls this summer raised eyebrows at first.

Buttler was reinstated into the Test team after an 18-month exile after an impressive IPL campaign, while Rashid was given the nod against India despite signing a white-ball-only deal with Yorkshire. The pair have now been awarded five-day contracts to confirm they are very much part of England’s long-term plans.

[caption id=”attachment_82300″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] ECB national selector Ed Smith is unafraid to think outside the box[/caption]

Test specialists and multi-format players will have their salaries paid in full by the ECB, while those with white-ball-only contracts will receive their supplement on top of their county wage.

Players in both formats will receive a ‘ranking’ based on their on-field performances, with off-field contribution, fitness and fielding also taken into consideration when calculating the level of remuneration.

Test contracts: Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire).

Limited overs contracts: Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Liam Plunkett (Surrey), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jason Roy (Surrey), Ben Stokes (Durham), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).

Incremental contracts: Tom Curran (Surrey)