Farokh Engineer, the former Indian wicketkeeper, has criticized Karun Nair for his subpar showings in the ongoing five-Test series against England. Nair, who rejoined Team India after eight years, hasn’t made a real impact in the first three games. He has scored 131 runs, with a highest score of 40. As India trails 1-2, people are questioning Nair’s spot in the starting lineup for the fourth Test, starting July 23.
Engineer said Nair’s performances weren’t good enough, arguing that a number three batter needs to make big scores. He told the Times of India that while Nair has been getting to 20s and 30s with some great shots, a beautiful 30 isn’t what’s expected from a number three. He said they need a not-so-beautiful 100 and that the expectation should be much higher.
Engineer thinks a young player like Sai Sudharsan should get another chance in the team. He said they should pick the best eleven, and to forget about age and pick whoever is going to give them the most to win the Test match.
Earlier, India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate addressed Karun Nair’s spot. He said that even though they’ve lost two winnable Tests, the team is still in good spirits. He noted that losing a lot of wickets quickly has been a key part of their losses. He estimates that losing six wickets for 40 has cost them the game twice. But, if you see each run of tally of all the batters they’re all batting nicely.
He added that even with someone like Karun, they feel his rhythm and tempo are good, and that the message is to focus on what they’ve done well and fix the little things that have cost them wins.