Karun Nair remains hopeful of reviving his Test career despite being overlooked for the Champions Trophy 2025 earlier this month. The Vidarbha and India batter, who last played a Test match in 2017, has been in sensational form in domestic cricket and believes he still has a chance to don the whites for India again.
BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed that Nair’s name was discussed during squad selection meetings, but he ultimately did not make the cut for the marquee tournament. Despite this, Nair remains focused on his long-term goal of returning to the Test setup.
“If I’m being honest, before the tournament, I wasn’t thinking about that. At least for me, it felt quite far away. But like I said, you have dreams, you have thoughts, you want to achieve things. But you’re not thinking, ‘I’m going to make it.’ You think, ‘I want to make it.’ But whether it will actually happen is always a question mark in your head,” Nair told Sports Today.
Nair’s omission from the Champions Trophy squad came despite an extraordinary performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He amassed a staggering 779 runs from eight innings at an average of 389.50, registering five centuries and a fifty. His dominant run made him the highest run-getter in the tournament and reignited discussions about his potential return to international cricket.
“I still have the dream of playing Test cricket for India. I’ve said it in many interviews. So quite honestly, that was the only thing on my mind. I wasn’t even thinking that I’d be mentioned or considered for the Champions Trophy squad, so I feel really grateful for that,” Nair added.
Dropped soon after triple century
The 32-year-old batter is best remembered for his unbeaten 303 against England in Chennai in 2016, making him only the second Indian to score a triple-century in Test cricket after Virender Sehwag. However, his international career never quite took off after that milestone, and he has been out of the Indian setup since 2017.
Despite the setbacks, Nair continues to push forward, drawing praise from cricketing legends. Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar recently lauded Nair’s recent exploits in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
“It was one of the greatest feelings ever to receive appreciation from your childhood hero. It was an amazing moment. I am really thankful to him for taking the time to put out that message. I feel truly blessed to have received those kind words from him. But again, I need to keep performing. Every game and every innings counts, so that remains my focus,” Nair said.
