The second triple centurion from India, Karun Nair was dropped from the Test squad which will tour Sri Lanka for 3 test matches starting from 26th July.
He made his Test debut for during the test series against England at home in 2016. In the 6 test matches, he has played so far, the middle order bat scored 303 in his 3rd test which helped team India to win the Test match by an innings and 75 runs.
Apart from that, he has failed to convert starts into big totals. He played 3 test matches against Australia in February- March this year scoring 26,0, 23 and 5 as India won the test series by 2-1. Rohit Sharma has been named as his replacement for the test series against Sri Lanka. He has also played 2 ODI matches for India against Zimbabwe.
“I will have to respect the decision of the team management and selectors,” Nair said. “That”s the way it goes and I am just focusing on South Africa now, the India “A” tour, looking forward to it. It is going to be a new experience for me, I have never been to South Africa, so trying to just prepare myself and do well there.
Karun Nair would be the captain for India A tour of South Africa which includes two four-day matches against South Africa A. The tri-series would be a chance to showcase his ability in limited overs format. He did not have a great IPL 10 for Delhi Daredevils scoring 281 runs in 14 matches with an average of 21.61. Delhi Daredevils failed to qualify for the knockout stages.
The stylish right-handed batsmen have played 45 first-class matches scoring 3280 runs for Karnataka making his debut in 2013. He has played a key role in helping Karnataka win back to back Ranji Trophy titles in 2013-14, 14-15. His best score in first-class cricket has been 328 against Tamil Nadu during the 2013-14 finals in Ranji Trophy. Apart from he has played 49 List A matches and 81 T20 matches.
With the conditions in South Africa helpful for the pace bowlers, Karun Nair needs to focus on playing positive cricket to get back into the Indian Test team.
Karun Nair in Test matches
Matches 6, Runs 374, Best Score- 303*, Average- 62.33,
Nair in first-class matches
Matches 45, Runs 3280, Best Score- 328, Average- 51.25