Karun Nair is in some sensational form in the Vijay Hazare trophy. In eight matches that he has led Vidarbha in, Nair has slammed 752 runs at an unbelievable average of 725 and has been dismissed only once.
Out of seven innings, Nair has crossed half-century six times and has five centuries. He made an unbeaten 88 in Vidarbha's semifinal against Maharashtra at Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara.
There have been talks going around to include the right-handed batter for India's squad for the Champions Trophy due to his insane form. However, former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik gave his thoughts on Nair's form. Karthik hailed Nair but stated he might not be able to make it to the Champions Trophy squad.
"Karun Nair, it’s been unreal to see the form that you’ve been in. Even Mayank Agarwal has been in some really good form. But the beauty is, it’s coming at a stage when the Indian ODI setup is almost ready to go. There can’t be too many changes," Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
He stated that it is tempting to bring him in the Indian team but that might not happen. "Yes, it’s very tempting to bring a Karun Nair into the setup, and I think he has earned the right to be part of the talks."
"But I don’t think he’ll make it to the Champions Trophy squad. But if he keeps going like this, why not? A form batter like that who plays fast and spin well, he’s a gun player, and I’m very happy for him," Karthik said.
Nair has the joint-most centuries by any player in a Vijay Hazare trophy season. His five tons in seven innings in the tournament are the most alongside Narayan Jagadeesan, who had hit five tons in eight innings.
The 33-year-old has a chance to break the record when his team will be up against Karnataka in the final of the tournament. Karnataka had defeated Haryana in the first semifinal when they chased down 238 without much of a hiccup.
Vidarbha defended the massive 380-run total in the second semifinal against Maharashtra. Centuries from Dhruv Shorey and Yash Rathod and strong half-tons from Nair and Jitesh Sharma led Vidarbha to a big win.