Average of 664! Let's just stop at that. Senior India batter and Vidarbha captain Karun Nair is scoring runs for fun in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. Nair has returned five centuries and an unbeaten 44 while getting dismissed just once in six innings and has taken his side to the Vijay Hazare Trophy semi-finals. Nair, whose international career ended prematurely in 2017 following the record-breaking 303*, might be back on the selectors' radar (as reported by the Indian Express) but has had a long struggle behind it to get to that point.
"Dear cricket, give me one more chance," this was a post from Nair two years ago in December 2022. Nair wasn't a regular in Karnataka's line-up then. Fast forward two years later, Nair switched his domestic side to Vidarbha, is leading the side, is scoring runs consistently, has an IPL deal with the Delhi Capitals and who knows, a return in the offing for the national side.
Nair smashed an unbeaten 122 off just 82 deliveries as Vidarbha coasted through their innings chasing a stiff target of 292 runs with 39 deliveries to spare. Dhruv Shorey too smashed an unbeaten century as Rajasthan bowlers just didn't have enough in them to stop the carnage. As Nair smashed his fifth hundred of the tournament, his two-year-old post went viral. Take a look-
Nair may not be in the mix for the Test team but has definitely put his name for discussion for the ODI side. The India-England series might be a bit too close but post the Champions Trophy when the the team looks to build towards the 2027 ODI World Cup, Nair with a consistent run, can be an option.
Vidarbha will take on Maharashtra in the second semi-final while Haryana take on Karnataka in other semis for a place in the grand finale on January 18.
