The 19th of December 2016 will be in the memory of Karun Nair until his last breath. For it was on this day that he made the transition from being just another international batsman to a special batsman.
A batsman, whose progress the world will follow with great interest, and someone who will have added expectations on his shoulders.
Starting the day not out on 71, Nair went on to get his maiden Test hundred, a moment most did not believe would come as early as it did following twin failures in Mohali and Mumbai.
Then, like all good batsman do, he carried that forward and got to the 200-mark, and late into the day, courtesy a cut shot off Adil Rashid, joined Virender Sehwag as the only other Indian batsman to record a triple century in Test cricket.
Extra cover: 5 Indian legends Karun Nair eclipsed during his special knock of 303
When PV Sindhu entered the Rio 2016 Olympic final this year, Abhinav Bindra had tweeted stating how lonely he felt being at the top, the sole Indian to win the Gold at the biggest stage of them all. The following day, in the final, Sindhu gave it her all, but could not join Bindra on the same pedestal.
On Monday, Sehwag didn’t tweet anything of that sort. But we, as Indian fans, knew we were witnessing something special. A young man playing just his third Test was starting to slowly enter into unchartered territory, one that batsman at such a dormant stage in their career, don't always go into.
As it turned out, when he did reach that elusive 300 mark, Sehwag wished the young turk as unlike Bindra, he had someone joining him at the top, incidentally achieving the landmark at the same venue, where many years earlier, he had made India’s highest ever individual score.
For all the hilarious tweets that Sehwag posts on his timeline every day, this was a message that was heartening to see and the fact that it had taken an Indian batsman 12 long years to join him at the top is an indication of how difficult it is to get there.
Invariably, all of us get into the discussion about the pitch and the quality of opposition instead of understanding the magnitude of the achievement. Nair began the day on 71 not out, his side on 391 for 4.
India added 368 runs on the day before declaring, The right-hander contributed 232 of them, which is quite sensational, whichever you look at it.
The fruit for the grind
Ever since the Indian Premier League burst onto the scene a lot of emphasis has been given to performances in that tournament. Staged over a month-and-half, it provides a good glimpse into the next generation, albeit in the shortest format of the game.
The glitz, the glamour and everything that is snazzy about the League often takes centre-stage and while it is good from an entertainment point of view, it is not always the right base to judge the true potential of a player.
Being a Ranji Trophy cricketer these days is among the hardest professions in the country. You hardly have TV coverage, one can count the number of spectators at the venue on their fingers and matches are played at sub-par grounds. And yet players turn up every single day and grind it out, looking to help their side stay in the contest.
Nair is a fine example of that. The 25-year-old entered the Indian Test team dressing room, not on the back of his IPL showing, but based on his performances in the Ranji Trophy, where he averages an impressive 51.10 in 39 matches for Karnataka.
In those 39 matches, Nair’s best score is 328, which he made in a Ranji Trophy final against arch-rivals Tamil Nadu.
On the other hand, take the example of an Axar Patel. Bursting onto the scene in the 2014 IPL, he impressed one-and-all with his slow left-armers and was quickly drafted into the Indian setup, to the extent that he was part of India’s 2015 World Cup squad.
Extra cover: When 'lucky' Karun Nair cheated death
Two years later, Axar is yet to make any significant mark on the international circuit.
Through his unbeaten 303, Nair showed one other quality in Indian cricket not seen too often these days - the ability to bat out an entire day. It’s a feature, which is fast diminishing thanks to the improving run rates but is one that needs to be given importance.
For it is not just an indication of the hunger to bat long but is also a testament to Nair's fitness and concentration levels, to be able to bat out an entire day in the heat of Chennai.
While it is important to appreciate such an incredible achievement, it is equally vital to not go overboard. Nair has shown the appetite for runs, but can he do it regularly and in conditions where the attack has a bit more bite and places that may not entirely be tailor-made for batting?
The answers to those questions will be known soon, but for now, it is time to celebrate a monumental achievement.
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