Karun Nair is on the cusp of an important career milestone as he gets set to return to India’s Test team, almost eight years since his last outing. The upcoming England series might be a much-awaited return for the middle-order batsman, who had made headlines with a record triple century in just his third Test.
Having made his debut in 2016 and making 303 without being dismissed in Chennai, Nair’s first-class career went off the tracks unexpectedly. He played his final Test in March 2017 against Australia in Dharamsala, and after that, opportunities turned rare despite a promising beginning. But the situation has changed now. Senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from the format have opened a door for Nair, partly due to his consistent showing on the domestic front.
Talking to the BCCI after being picked for the England tour, the 32-year-old was open about his comeback. Admitting that the urge to come back never went away and he had sweated to get back into the team, he said the call allowed him a huge relief and a fresh belief that he could deliver on the international stage once again.
“My first thought when I woke up was that I wanted to play Test cricket. I want to play for India again. That’s probably what kept me going and kept me hungry. The driving force go to training every day, go to practise every day. I had a goal of wanting to play Test cricket again, and I was always looking at playing test cricket, and every day, every morning, I used to wake up thinking, what I should do to achieve that goal,” Nair shared.
Looking back at the emotional value of this moment, Nair called it a “full-circle” moment. He was included in India’s team during the 2018 England tour but didn’t play any of the Tests. Now, with a place in the playing XI within his grasp, he wants to make the best of this second innings and relish every moment in Indian whites again.
“Feeling honoured to wear this jersey and honoured to be representing my country. When I saw everyone for the first time, that’s when I felt that I was finally in the team. Till then, it was like a wait for me to kind of start feeling like I’d made it again. It’s been a few years,” he commented.
“You know, getting that first session under the belt was a relief. I’m grateful to get that opportunity. Life has come full circle because I went out of the team in England, and now I’m coming back into the team in England, so it’s been a while, and I’m trying to embrace that,” he mentioned.
