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Karun Nair's Non-Selection Means India Are Moving On From Him: Former Player
Follow UsThe veteran batter was overlooked for the West Indies Tests after a poor outing against England
Karun Nair was among the players dropped from India's squad for the two Tests against West Indies. Nair failed to impress on his return to the team in England, scoring just a solitary fifty across the series.
Former India Wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik believes his non-selection means India have decided to move on from the veteran batter.
“The fact that Karun Nair is not looked at anymore means they are moving on from him, which is very tough on him. I think he played in one of the toughest series on tough pitches. But in all fairness, he’ll look back himself and say, ‘Could I have scored more runs in a couple of innings at the start, in the first three Tests?’ Because in the last Test, he got a 50 on a tough pitch," Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
However, Karthik believes Nair would have scored runs against West Indies, given that it is played at home, where he is no stranger to scoring big in first-class cricket.
"I can promise you if he was playing this series, he would get runs. It’s almost a given, the way he’s batting. The fact is they are saying, ‘Big series, we gave him an opportunity and he didn’t deliver. So, we move on to somebody young for the future," Karthik added.
Karthik is, however, pleased to see Devdutt Padikkal in the squad. The southpaw may not have scored big in the second unofficial Test against Australia A, but he slammed a 150 in the first match. Before that, he scored 57 and 16* in his only Duleep Trophy match.
“I really feel Devdutt being given an opportunity is a good thing because he has got 80 in Australia (for India A last year). He’s got skills because Australia is a very hard place to play and he got runs there. And the England series last year, he got a 50 in Dharamsala. So, he has earned his stripes. He got injured and that’s why Karun Nair came into the squad. Otherwise, Devdutt would have been part of the squad from Day One in England. He has earned his recall into the Indian team," Karthik, who scored 1,025 runs in 26 Tests for India, said.
India and West Indies lock horns in the first Test in Ahmedabad on October 2 (Thursday).