Karun Nair has been selected in Team India for the tour of England.Image Credit Source: Getty Images
When Team India steps on June 20 at the Handingley Stadium in Leeds, the new captain will be on Shubman Gill. Not just because he is the new Test captain of Team India and will lead the team in a match for the first time. The eyes of Indian fans and experts on Gill will also be rested as to which players they give a chance in the playing XI in their first Test match. Especially Karun Nair is given a chance from the beginning of the series or not, everyone will want to know. But there is no need to wait for June 20 for this because before Gill, Head Coach Gautam Gambhir has made it clear in gestures that Nair will be given a chance.
Team India’s press conference was held on Thursday 5 June before Team India left for England tour. During this, Shubman Gill and Gautam Gambhir answered the questions of the media. After becoming a new Test captain, Gill came in front of the media for the first time and he conveyed his views to the fans through journalists. But apart from Gill, during this time, Head Coach Gambhir also gave a strong answers to some important questions and one of the questions was asked about Karun Nair.
Karun Nair has received a call from Team India after 8 years and while continuing his best form, he recently scored a double century against England Lions. In such a situation, the question about Karun’s playing in the press conference was natural. When this question came, Gambhir expressed his intentions in gestures instead of directly answering. Gambhir said, “It is always good to have an experienced player like Karun because he has also played county cricket and has been in excellent form, has just scored a double century for India A.”
#Karunnair Has impressed one and all with his consistency, including Head Coach @Gautamgambhir,
Given the Opportunity, Will He Make the Middle Order His OWN?
Watch England Lions vs Ind A, Fri, 6 Jun, 3:30 PM Onwards, On Jiohotstar pic.twitter.com/wuw57b5kl6
– Star Sports (@StarsportsIndia) June 5, 2025
What Gambhir said further, indicated that Karun will get opportunities from the beginning of the series. The head coach said, “In such circumstances, it is important for players with good form to stay in the team. Their experience will definitely work for us and I hope they will be able to perform strongly.” Now if Gambhir is expecting them of good performance, then obviously he would like to give Karun a chance for him.
That is, it can be assumed that Karun will be included in the playing XI of the Handingley Test. The question will only be about their batting position. In the match between India A and England Lions, Karun came at number three and played a memorable innings of 204 runs. He has been in excellent form for the last one year. At the same time, his performance against England and on England’s land has also been strong. The Karnataka batsman, who played for Vidarbha, has scored an innings of more than 200 runs in his career, out of which 3 times have scored such scores against the teams associated with England or England.