"The England tour is coming" - Aakash Chopra on Karun Nair's potential India return after prolific domestic season

Former India player Aakash Chopra has opined that Karun Nair has staked a strong claim for a spot in India's squad for the Test tour of England later this year. He pointed out that the Vidarbha batter has been on a century-scoring spree in domestic cricket.

Nair scored 135 runs off 295 deliveries in Vidarbha's second innings in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2024-25 final against Kerala in Nagpur. He was unlucky to miss a hundred in the first innings as he was run out for a 188-ball 86.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the cricketer-turned-commentator was asked whether Nair merits an India recall.

"He has scored nine centuries in this season combining the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Ranji Trophy. Now he has scored a century in the Ranji Trophy final as well and Vidarbha are almost on the verge of victory. They have already got the first-innings lead. So they are in a very good position," he responded (18:05).

"It's a strong case now. The England tour is coming. I remember he had gone on an England tour once and he wasn't played. He was part of the team but someone came from outside and played, and he was left sitting outside. I think Virat Kohli was the captain at that time and Ravi bhai (Shastri) was the coach. After that, he was left out like a fly is removed from milk and nobody actually bothered afterwards," Chopra added.

Aakash Chopra noted that Karun Nair went through a bad phase after being dropped from the Indian side. He pointed out that the right-handed batter was left out of the Karnataka team and had to go and play for Vidarbha.

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"If you don't see his name around the Indian team now, I would say it's injustice" - Aakash Chopra on Karun Nair

Karun Nair has represented India in six Tests and two ODIs. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that it would be unfair if Karun Nair isn't considered for a place in the Indian team after his exploits in domestic cricket.

"When someone scores nine centuries, you have to stand up and take notice. If you don't see his name around the Indian team now, I would say it's injustice. There is no point of domestic cricket if you don't even consider him," he said (19:00).

The former India opener added that the visitors might look for changes in the batting department for the England tour after underwhelming performances in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25.

"The focus will once again be on batting on the England tour. We didn't bat very well in the BGT. So if you are looking at changes, Karun Nair's name should be in that thinking. He is not a spring chicken but he is also a guy who has scored a triple hundred in Test cricket. So the triple centurion should get his due," Chopra observed.

To conclude, Aakash Chopra reckoned that Karun Nair should be very close to playing for India again. He expressed hope of it happening, highlighting that it would be a wonderful story.