NEW DELHI: Right-handed batter
Karun Nair
has returned to the national radar with his selection in the Abhimanyu Easwaran-led India ‘A’ squad for the upcoming tour of England, beginning May 30. India ‘A’ are set to play two matches against England Lions — from May 30 to June 2 in Canterbury and June 6 to 9 in Northampton — followed by an intra-squad match against the senior India Test squad from June 13 to 16 in Beckenham.Welcoming Nair’s inclusion, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan wrote on social media:
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
“Karun Nair getting selected for India A is clear indication that ‘Dear cricket will give him another chance to play for team India again’.”
In its announcement of the 18-member squad, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also stated that Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan will join the team ahead of the second game against England Lions, once IPL 2025 concludes on June 3.Nair, who famously scored a triple century against England in Chennai in December 2016, was a standout performer in Vidarbha’s Ranji Trophy-winning 2024–25 season, amassing 863 runs at an average of 53.93 to finish as the tournament’s fourth-highest run-getter.He also featured in the County Championship Division 1 for Northamptonshire over the past two seasons, scoring 736 runs from 14 innings at an average of 56.61, including two centuries and a highest score of 202 not out.
IPL 2025: The unsung heroes of India's T20 league
With Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from
Test cricket
, the performances of Nair and Easwaran on this tour will be closely watched by the Indian team management and the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee, as they seek to rebuild the Test batting core.The India ‘A’ squad also features several Test-capped players, including vice-captain Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shardul Thakur, Ishan Kishan, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Harshit Rana, and Sarfaraz Khan, who returns after recovering from a rib injury sustained during the 2024–25 tour of Australia.A few uncapped names have also earned call-ups: Manav Suthar, Tanush Kotian, Anshul Kamboj, Tushar Deshpande, and Harsh Dubey, who was the leading wicket-taker and Player of the Tournament in the 2024–25 Ranji Trophy.Khaleel Ahmed and Ruturaj Gaikwad, both of whom have featured in India’s white-ball squads, are also part of the touring party to England.
English (US) ·