Karun Nair is all set to end a seven-year-long wait to return to the Indian Test team in the upcoming series against England. The Vidarbha batter made his Test debut in 2016 against England, went on to score a triple-hundred in the same year, only to be dropped from the side after a couple of more games. Now, he is prepared to make his comeback. But make no mistake, the task at hand isn’t an easy one whatsoever for Nair.
How Nair fill in the Virat Kohli void?
Karun is expected to play at number 4 in the Test series against England, a position that previously belonged to Virat Kohli. The former Indian skipper took everyone by surprise by announcing his abrupt decision to retire from Tests in May, leaving a void in the middle-order. Kohli has made majority of the runs in his Test career (7564 runs at an average of 50.09) while batting at number 4.
No other Indian batter in the current line-up is anywhere close to Virat in terms of his record at number 4. And this is what will make Karun’s life tougher.
In six Tests, Nair has managed to score just 374 runs, which includes just that one triple hundred against Australia in Chennai. 321 runs have been scored by the batter while batting at number 5 and the remainder at number 6. One should remember that this is from nearly 7 years ago.
After being dropped from the Indian Test side, Nair went back to playing domestic cricket to amass runs. Following a dull 2022, he played County Championship for two seasons which allowed him to regain his form and confidence. He then sizzled with consistent performances in domestic tournaments including Ranji Trophy 2023/24, Vijay Hazare Trophy and Ranji Trophy 2024/25.
He finished as the highest run getter in VHT, amassing 779 runs from 9 matches. In Ranji Trophy 2024/25, he finished with 690 runs to his name, averaging 40.98. That was followed by a d decent PL 2025 season, where he scored 198 runs in 8 matches.
In the India A series against England Lions, he scored a double century in the 1st unofficial Test, followed by knocks of 40 & 15 to strengthen his case for a spot in India’s playing XI in the England Tests.
Given his red-hot form and his red-ball cricket experience, Karun might be the best man to fill in Virat Kohli’s shoes at number 4. However, it will not be an easy task and he will surely be under immense pressure.
Karun Nair set to end 7-year Test exile only to face uphill task of filling in Virat Kohli’s shoes Inside Sport India.
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