It was the summer of heartbreak for Karun Nair. Circa 2018, and India were touring England for a five-Test series. Nair was in the squad, although warming the bench until an opportunity arose ahead of the final Test at The Oval. But the team management, captain Virat Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri, in consultation with the then selection committee, decided to fly in Hanuma Vihari from India and drafted him into the playing XI. Nair’s international career came to a grinding halt.
Four years later, after he was dropped from the Karnataka Ranji Trophy squad, Nair took to social media and posted: “Dear cricket, give me one more chance.” The 33-year-old batsman has earned a second chance by dint of his performances in domestic cricket. He made 863 runs at 53.93 in Vidarbha’s title-winning Ranji Trophy campaign last season. Before that, in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he scored five hundreds and a half-century in eight innings to finish with an average of 389.50. Ajit Agarkar & Co could no longer ignore him. Ignoring him would have been disrespectful to India’s domestic cricket structure.
As far as India comebacks are concerned, this is Mohinder Amarnath-esque – so impressive that even Gautam Gambhir, the head coach, singled out Nair for special praise ahead of India’s first training session in England. “Comebacks are never easy,” Gambhir said in a video released by BCCI.tv. “The amount of runs he got, the never-give-up attitude – it’s inspiring for the entire team. Welcome back, Karun Nair.”
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Day 2 of India’s practice was all about steady steps. Pant kept, KL ran sprints, Karun looked sharp, and the young top order got more time in the middle.@rohitjuglan ✍🏻https://t.co/tNgLgigsbk
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) June 13, 2025
Cricket so far hasn’t been kind to the man from Karnataka. He made his Test debut against England in Mohali in November 2016. A month later, he scored a triple century in Chennai. It’s a travesty that he only played three more Tests after that.
Following Rohit Sharma and Kohli’s Test retirements, the Indian team has a new-look slip cordon in training. And Nair’s presence in that, at first slip, drops a hint on his selection for the first Test in Leeds. He can’t afford to fail. “Very grateful and fortunate to get this opportunity again,” he told BCCI.tv. “Looking forward to grabbing this opportunity with both hands.”
If Nair is picked for the first Test, what should be his batting position? A lot will depend on where Shubman Gill slots himself in. If the skipper sticks to his preferred No. 3 position, then Nair could come in at No. 4. Then again, there’s a school of thought that Sai Sudharsan should be the one-drop, with Gill batting at No. 4. The English conditions will test Sai’s front-foot technique, but that’s a different issue.
In Nair’s case, irrespective of his batting position – No. 4 or 6 – he will have to make the opportunity count.