“Have a bit of a soft corner for him” - Former cricketer speaks out against Karun Nair’s exclusion from IND vs WI 2025 Test series

Former India batter Mohammad Kaif has opined that Karun Nair should have been included in the squad for the two-match Test series against West Indies, starting Thursday, October 2, in Ahmedabad. The right-handed batter made his return to the national team in the 2025 Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy for the first time since 2017.

He featured in four games, scoring 205 runs at an average of 25.63, including a solitary fifty. His standout innings of 57 came in the final Test at The Oval, which India eventually won by six runs, helping them draw the five-match series 2-2.

However, on September 25, Ajit Agarkar announced India’s 15-member squad for the West Indies series, which did not include Karun Nair. On Wednesday, October 1, Mohammad Kaif highlighted Nair’s crucial fifty in the fifth Test of the England tour and stated that the 33-year-old should have been given one or two more series. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaif said:

“Look, I feel I have a bit of a soft corner for him because in that last Test match, it was a really tough pitch and a high-pressure game. If you look at India’s first innings score, his 50 runs were the highest. The next best was around 30. India had scored close to 200 in that innings, and out of that, 50 were from Karun Nair. We veventually won that Test by just six runs. In such a close game, where the margin was only six runs, Karun’s 50 in the first innings was very important.”

“And throughout that series, he was consistently scoring 30-40 runs. But at the same time, Shubman Gill was hitting double centuries, scoring hundreds, breaking records one after another. So, those 30-40 runs didn’t get much value or attention. On that England tour, a 30-40 didn’t seem significant. That’s why his crucial 30-40 runs didn’t get talked about much. But I felt in that difficult match to bat on, when we were under pressure and trailing 2-1 in the series, his contribution was vital. That’s why I think maybe he should have been given one or two more series,” he added.

Karun Nair has played 10 Tests, scoring 579 runs at an average of 41.35, including one century and one fifty.

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“The example being set here isn’t right” - Mohammad Kaif lashes out at uncapped player’s snub from IND vs WI 2025 Test series

Apart from Karun Nair, Abhimanyu Easwaran is another player who was part of the England tour squad but did not make it to the West Indies series. Easwaran earned his maiden call-up in December 2022 and has since been included in various squads, but is yet to make his debut. Speaking on his YouTube channel during the same video, Mohammad Kaif said:

“I mean, he stays in the Test squad. He becomes the 12th man, goes out to field, but doesn’t get a chance in the playing XI. So, I personally feel that when domestic players perform so well and then finally get their names in the Test squad, the example being set here isn’t right.”

“On one hand, you say that performances in the Ranji Trophy and domestic tournaments matter, that you consider them seriously while picking the Test team, that selections for the XI are based on those performances. Karun’s comeback itself happened because of this because he scored heavily in domestic cricket,” he added.

Abhimanyu Easwaran has played 104 first-class matches, scoring 7,885 runs at an average of 48.67, including 27 centuries and 31 fifties.