Karun Nair on thin ice after Lord’s flop show; Gautam Gambhir, Shubman Gill to think long and hard as axe threat looms

Karun Nair’s Test return hit a flat note; despite no glaring flaws, lack of runs leaves his spot uncertain for fourth Test against England

For Karun Nair, England was supposed to be the stage where he would sing the redemption song. Where he would revive a Test career that began with so much promise, but ran into a roadblock for no fault of his. Where he would, finally, erase dark memories of his previous visit with the Indian team in 2018 when, despite being in the original party, he was overlooked at the altar of a mid-series reinforcement, Hanuma Vihari.

India's batter Karun Nair plays a shot during the fourth day of the third Test match between India and England, at the Lord's Cricket Ground (PTI)

Three matches into his second coming as a Test batter, Karun hasn’t done a great deal to further his cause. He hasn’t looked out of sorts, but he hasn’t produced the scores that would suggest that he is at home in the five-day game, either. In a series largely dominated by the bat, Karun is the only top-four from either side not to have made a half-century. After six innings, the last of which ended in disaster late on Sunday evening when he was trapped leg before offering no stroke to Brydon Carse at Lord’s, he has 131 runs at an average of 21.83 and a highest of 40, a fluent knock in the first innings of the third Test which was terminated by a sensational left-handed catch at first slip by Joe Root.

These things happen, you know, when you are trying to work your way back into the larger scheme. Strange spokes in the wheel become commonplace, unusual modes of dismissal or exceptional catches surface without warning. It’s as if the cricketing Gods are teasing you, checking your resilience, your inner strength, your mental resolve, your hunger and desperation.

Fact is, Karun Nair is skating on thin ice.

The funny thing is, the 33-year-old hasn’t looked out of place.

He hasn’t been nervy or edgy, he hasn’t appeared as if he thinks he doesn’t belong. During all his stints at the batting crease except in the first innings of the first Test, he has looked comfortable, aided by flattish tracks in the first two matches which threw up veritable run-fests. And yet, that one defining, career-resurrecting knock has been conspicuously elusive.

Karun’s unbeaten 303 against the same opposition more than eight years back in Chennai, the third and till date last triple century by an Indian in Tests, ought to have been the springboard to greater feats. But in many ways, that milestone hangs heavy around his neck, having assumed proportions of a millstone. His exploits in the domestic scene for Vidarbha, and for Northamptonshire over the last two seasons, made him a sure shot for selection despite the new leadership group’s desire to distance itself from the past. Yet, he had to divorce himself from the memory of 303 when he returned to England last month with the Test squad.

One could understand, almost sympathise with, Karun’s eagerness to get off the mark in the first innings at Headingley because of the long wait between Test appearances. He met a floaty ball from Ben Stokes with a scything willow, trying to will the ball over cover, only for Ollie Pope to fling himself to his left, goalkeeper style, and send him packing for a duck. It was the worst possible start to his new life as a Test cricketer, but with the promise that things could only get better. They have, if only marginally – 20, 31, 26, 40 and 14. Starts in his last five innings, yet not even a daddy fifty, let alone a daddy hundred.

Karun Nair’s future now hinges on team strategy

After Monday’s final day at Lord’s, which should be full of drama and tension and emotion and intensity with India needing 135 runs and England six wickets to each go 2-1 up, there’s a long gap before the fourth Test in Manchester from July 23. Shubman Gill and Gautam Gambhir will use this period to work out if they should stick with Karun or go back to Sai Sudharsan, who made 0 and 30 on debut in Leeds. One line of thought might be that because Karun hasn’t looked out of sorts, never mind the glaring absence of a big score, he is worth keeping the faith in. The other could revolve around bringing the left-handed Sudharsan back into the mix at No. 3 in a future-orientated move, which could effectively stall Karun’s all-too-brief foray back into the five-day format.

Gill and Gambhir will think long and hard before making the final call. They will be mindful of what is best for Karun, of course, but the bigger picture will necessitate their focus to be trained on what’s best for the team. Karun might feel hard done by if the dice doesn’t roll his way, but he will also be the first to acknowledge that he himself played a part in that eventuality. That’s how the cookie crumbles, sometimes.