'Has Karun Nair grabbed the opportunity?': Deep Dasgupta, Murali Kartik question batter's spot amid possible axe

Karun Nair’s failure to make the most of the good starts on his return to the Indian cricket team could hurt the right-handed batter, as there are speculations that the management could go back to Sai Sudharsan. Karun Nair has scored 131 runs so far in six innings at an average of almost 22 on his return to the team after an eight-year absence.

The 33-year-old Vidarbha batter has managed to get starts but failed to convert them and his last dismissal, against Brydon Carsen, where he was out lbw after misjudging the ball and trying to leave it, has divided opinions.

With India already 2-1 down in the five-match series, there are speculations that Sudharsan may return to the playing XI after making his Test debut in the first match at Headingley.

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Former Indian cricketer Deep Dasgupta is also of the same opinion, as he feels India must invest in Sudharsan as the 23-year-old has a long career in front of him.

“In the Playing XI, you don’t want more than one change. If there is only one, it would be replacing Karun Nair with Sai Sudharsan. Because Karun Nair hasn’t made any runs,” Dasgupta said. “He’s got starts, but hasn’t converted them into big scores. I also believe he doesn’t look that comfortable at the crease either.”

“Sai Sudharsan is a young player. If you want to invest in this England series, you’d rather invest in a younger player. Karun Nair has got starts in both Test matches, but he hasn’t looked that convincing. So if you’re looking to build ahead, you might as well invest in someone like Sai Sudharsan. Because after this, I don’t know when you’ll come back to a series in England.”

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Meanwhile, former India spinner Murali Kartik also agreed that Nair has failed to live up to the expectations so far, but did not give a clear opinion on whether he should be dropped or not.

“Karun Nair banged and broke the door, did everything, and made a comeback. That is why he has been in the 11 as well. But from No.5 or 6, he was shifted up to No.3 as he has experience. Given the number of runs he scored, he got a chance because of that. But has he grabbed the opportunity so far? I don’t think so, and there will be a lot of pressure on him,” he said on Cricbuzz.

“Will India look at continuity? They should. Because if you are playing any player with some logic, you want the player to prove that right. But it is also important to see if the player has converted the runs based on the experience. Has he done it? maybe not. So it will be interesting to see what Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill think about him for the next game.”