The recent announcement of the Indian team for the next Champions Trophy 2025 sparked a debate, particularly around the exclusion of Karun Nair. Although he was in sensational form during the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25Nair’s name was missing from the team. Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has now shared his thoughts on why the talented slugger was not retained even after his stellar performance.
Karun Nair’s superb performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy
Nair was simply exceptional during the Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he showed remarkable consistency with the bat. Representing Vidarbha, Nair amassed a staggering total of 779 runs in just eight matches, including five centuries. His prolific scores earned him the top spot in the tournament’s run rankings, and despite Vidarbha’s loss to Karnataka led by Mayank Agarwal in the final, he was named player of the series. His performance raised eyebrows and sparked conversations about his possible inclusion in India’s Champions Trophy squad.
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Sunil Gavaskar explains the reason behind Karun Nair’s exclusion
Despite Nair’s undeniable performance, his name was notably absent from the Indian squad for the Champions Trophy 2025. Gavaskar, a cricketing legend, gave his opinion on the selection decision. He explained that Nair’s exclusion stemmed from considerations relating to team balance and player roles. Gavaskar pointed out that both players in the team already had well-established roles and their strong performances in recent tournaments made it difficult for Nair to integrate into the team.
“Where should they put it? You could have taken the place of KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. KL will play the role of second keeper-batsman in this team, and his performance in the 2023 World Cup has been good. I don’t think the Indian cricket team played much ODI cricket after that. Shreyas Iyer has also performed well in this format. This is why Karun Nair was not chosen“, the former Indian captain told SportsTak (via Inside sports)