Karun Nair’s tendency to throw away starts is becoming a recurring theme. The 33-year-old crossed 20 runs five times in eight innings in England, yet his top score was only 57. The pattern has re-emerged in the opening round of the 2025-2026 Ranji Trophy.
Karun Nair gets dropped
In the aftermath of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli‘s Test retirements, Nair was selected for his experience in both domestic cricket and England. But he failed to deliver. Subsequently, Nair wasn’t selected in India’s squad for the home West Indies Test series.
“We expected more from Karun Nair. It can’t be just one innings,” Chairman of Selectors Ajit Agarkar had said while explaining why Nair wasn’t picked.
A few days later, Nair had the opportunity to once again contend for a place in India’s Test team. His direct competitor was his Karnataka teammate Devdutt Padikkal. The left-handed batter was part of the West Indies series but didn’t get to play a match.
Fails to convert start against Saurashtra
Nair was directly competing with Padikkal. The duo actually stitched a 146-run stand against Saurashtra at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot. But as has been the case, Nair dropped the ball. Batting on 73, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja pinned him in front of the wicket.
A hundred or more was for the taking. Historically, Rajkot has been a batting-friendly surface, but Nair failed to capitalise. Fascinatingly, Padikkal fell short of a hundred as well. But the 25-year-old has age, selectors, and management on his side.
“Padikkal offers more. We would like to give 15-20 chances to everyone. But it is not possible in these circumstances. Padikkal has been in great form, and he was in the team,” Agarkar had said.
To contend for a spot in the India vs South Africa Test series, Nair has to score heavily and outperform Padikkal at a minimum. Against Saurashtra, he wasn’t able to do so. The only good thing for Nair is that Karnataka will total four Ranji Trophy matches before the Proteas series begins on November 14.
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