BENGALURU: Karun Nair and England. It’s hard to miss the middle-order batter’s connection with the country. A Test career which held much promise started against England in Mohali during the 2016 home series.It also came to an abrupt halt in England. In a period of six months, the now 33-year-old played six Tests, scoring 374 runs including a momentous unbeaten 303, also against England in Chennai.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Indian selectors’ decisions are sometimes baffling, the unceremonious dropping of Nair being one of them. After a rather forgettable home series against Australia in 2017, in which he scored 54 runs in three innings, the call-up for the English summer sojourn in 2018 gave Nair an opportunity to stake claim to a middle-order slot. But, Hanuma Vihari, who made it to England midway through the series as an injury reinforcement, was handed a debut in the final Test at the Oval, while Nair was left out.Who’s that IPL player?Back in his home state Karnataka, his lack of numbers and proper guidance saw him go without a century for 56 domestic matches across formats. He went from being the captain to warming the bench. This prompted the talented batter to move to Vidarbha.

In Dec 2022, Nair’s social media post, “Dear cricket, give me one more chance”, went viral. While Nair made the plea, he left nothing to chance. Throughout his career, Nair has banked heavily on hard work and waited patiently for them to bear fruit. Nair’s comeback trail began in the summer of 2023 and in England, no less!Turning up for Northamptonshire in the county championship division one in 2023, he served a reminder of his proficiency, scoring 249 in three matches, which included a 144* against Surrey. The following year, he upped the ante with an unbeaten double century (202*) against Glamorgan. He carried back the form from England. In the 2024-25 domestic season, his prolific run included 863 runs in nine Ranji Trophy matches with four centuries, while five hundreds highlighted the 779 runs he scored in eight Vijay Hazare Trophy one-day outings.

The years away from the spotlight have changed Nair as a person and cricketer. Mentally tougher, physically fitter and game-wise more mature, cricket hasn’t just given him a chance, he has earned his place.