In a light-hearted second that supplied a glimpse into the camaraderie inside the Indian group, veteran batter Karun Nair playfully declared himself the ‘greatest footballer’ within the present Indian squad.
This amusing declare got here through the group’s interplay with Manchester United gamers forward of the fourth Check in opposition to England at Outdated Trafford, the place gamers from each sports activities engaged in pleasant cricket and soccer exchanges. Nevertheless, this witty comment from Nair arrives at a time of serious skilled problem, as his much-anticipated Check comeback has sadly concluded together with his omission from the enjoying XI for the essential Manchester Check.
With a notable hole within the schedule previous the Outdated Trafford Check, the Indian group capitalized on the chance to have interaction in a singular interplay with stars from Manchester United, fostering goodwill and providing a refreshing break from the rigours of Check cricket. Throughout this joint session, which featured each cricket and soccer, Karun delivered a memorable and humorous assertion, asserting, “I don’t assume there’s any higher than me in the mean time,” in reference to his footballing prowess inside the Indian group. This jovial declaration, captured in a video, offered a second of levity. But, behind this light-hearted declare lies a extra critical narrative concerning Nair’s latest Check profession.
Quickfire questions with #TeamIndia at Carrington 👀🏏 pic.twitter.com/ZAGMjqZWtM
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 23, 2025
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Poor kind with the bat in Anderson-Tendulkar trophy and omission from Manchester Check
The 33-year-old had made a extremely anticipated comeback to the Indian Check aspect after a major seven-year hiatus, fueled by a record-breaking home season, together with a double century in an India A tour recreation. Nevertheless, his efficiency within the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy has been underwhelming; throughout three Exams and 6 innings at No. 3, he managed solely 131 runs at a median of 21.83, with a highest rating of simply 40 within the first innings of the Lord’s Check. His scores of 14(33), 40(62), 26(46), 31(50), 20(54) and 0(4) spotlight an incapacity to transform begins into substantial innings.
Consequently, for the fourth Check at Outdated Trafford, the group administration made the robust determination to drop Karun from the enjoying eleven, bringing in younger batter Sai Sudharsan in his place. Nair struggled to translate his home kind into Check success, regardless of captain Shubman Gill‘s earlier backing. His exclusion, alongside the debut of seamer Anshul Kamboj and the return of Shardul Thakur for injured gamers, indicators India’s intent to discover a successful mixture as they search to stage the sequence. Nair’s return to Karnataka for the upcoming home season, after a three-year stint with Vidarbha, confirms his give attention to regaining kind and doubtlessly incomes one other probability sooner or later.
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