Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes Karun Nair did not make the most of the opportunities he got in the ongoing England Test series, as the batter was dropped for the Manchester Test. Sai Sudharsan replaced him in the playing XI and scored a composed 61 off 151 balls while batting at number three.
Speaking on JioStar, Manjrekar also recalled the emotional tweet Karun had once posted, which read: “Cricket, give me another chance.”
Manjrekar said: “It was an emotional story where he said, ‘Cricket, give me another chance’. Cricket gave him another chance,” he said on JioStar. “Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to catch it. And, you know, we have Sai Sudarshan coming back. So that was the story. Good to see Sai Sudarshan back, because I thought he should have played the second test as well.”
Karun Nair’s return to India’s Test setup has been disappointing, with only 131 runs from six innings. Despite getting several starts, he failed to convert them into substantial scores. Manjrekar feels the issue hasn’t been with Nair’s batting technique but rather his inability to open up and play freely, as he hasn’t even registered a half-century.
“We think Karun is batting well,” he said. “The first match he didn’t really play at his number (batted at 6). It’s difficult when a player is making a comeback in a series like this, you know. But I don’t think there’s been any issue with his batting. Sometimes it’s also about getting that click, you know. Once you’re able to make your 50, then you’re able to get back into your zone and get some big runs. Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened for him so far,” he concluded.
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