Karun Nair, India’s Only Triple Centurion Other Than Virender Sehwag, Gets 2nd Chance After 8 Years

On December 10, 2022, a Hurt Karun Nair wrote on his handles on social networks: “Dear Cricket gives me a chance.” On May 24, 2025, the cricket replied: “Dear Karun, you will still have a chance.” The NAIR, 33, had this opportunity for a career recovery thanks to its selection to the Indian team of 18 members for the tour of next month in England. It is an extraordinary story of return, perseverance and desire to cringe it in the discouraging darkness of domestic cricket over eight years.

Even the hardest man can collapse under this draining exercise, optimism is dried in the sun every passing day.

But Nair dared to dream of a return even when the world around him believed that all hopes had been extinguished. After all, it is easy to forget old names in the middle of the rush of new talents.

However, part of Nair has remained adamant, forcing him to explore various channels to return to racing tracks, and join the Northampothire in English County cricket was a judicious first step.

In 2023, he made 249 points of three matches on average of 83 for Northants, including a hundred against the champions possible Surrey.

A year later, Nair joined 487, seven matches on an average of 49, including a century against Glamorgan for his county team.

But these figures were not strong enough to trigger a national return but were good enough to give it confidence.

“Everyone knows, so that the Indian drummers go out of points in England … Playing the ball in motion is difficult. So I learned much more about myself as a drummer and finding ways to score races and believe in me,” Nair told PTI last year.

The real turnaround of his career came with his visit to Vidarbha in Karnataka, where he had more and more difficulty in obtaining a place in the first eleven.

Vidarbha, who was looking for an experienced pro in their alignment as a hitter, then welcomed Nair in their ranks.

The right -hander has not disappointed its new side either, accumulating 690 flows by 10 games with two hundred and three fifty.

Nair pushed his stocks another level at the top of the 2024-25 season, Amount 863 takes place nine games, with an average of 54 with four hundred.

To exceed it, Bengaluru’s striker scored 779 points on seven games in the tournament on a day of the Vijay Hazare trophy over five centuries, and its average took place at an astronomical 389.50.

Nair was not only struck at the doors, but he crashed with these performances, because his inclusion in the Indian team has become a subject of national debate.

“This is what he always wanted to do – to score races, to return to Team India. From the first day at the Vidarbha camp, he would tell us that I am still 3-4 years of cricket in me at the highest level. He is happy that he finally succeeded in achieving it, and we are all proud of him,” said Usman Gani, The Vidarbha Coach, said PTI.

Nair’s stellar race helped Vidarbha crowd the Ranji trophy during the 2024-25 season, but unnoticed by many, that helped him get out of a dark cellar.

Nair is reborn. Confidence in skills has multiplied. He began to open more to the other players in the locker room.

“I think the problem when he came to us (Vidarbha) was his apprehension on his abilities. But once he had a regular chance of playing domestic cricket against quality opponents, confidence has returned.

“We can say safely that he flourished with the team. He never looked like a stranger in the locker room and we took additional care so as not to make him feel a stranger. He just needed large coherent races.

The only parallel with Nair’s exceptional return to the history of Indian Cricket is VVS Laxman’s agitation race in the 1999 national season.

Posed by the Indian team, Laxman returned to the Ranji trophy and hammered 1415 points of nine matches at an average of 108.8 with nine hundred.

From that moment, Laxman’s career has taken a “very very special” turn for the next decade.

Nair is at a very similar stadium, and during the five -game test series in England, he will have the chance to face a familiar rival against which he had made a triple one.

Can NAIR again touch these heights? There would be too many opponents now.