India’s defeat at Lord’s has forced questions to be pushed towards the team management, in terms of what needs to be changed to convert strong performances into clinical ones that translate to wins.
In terms of personnel changes, one of the names on the lips of many is Karun Nair, who hasn’t quite delivered on his return to the Indian Test team.
While Nair has provided starts to his innings, he has fallen prey to lapses of concentration and poor decision cutting his innings short in the 30s and 40s. Karun’s inability across innings to go on and get a big score.
As a result, Karun’s position in the team is now at risk. Former Indian cricket Murali Kartik reflected on how his role will be a question mark heading into the Manchester Test.
“Karun Nair banged and broke the door, did everything, and made a comeback. That is why he has been in the 11 as well. But from No.5 or 6, he was shifted up to No.3 as he has experience,” said Kartik on Cricbuzz. “Given the number of runs he scored, he got a chance because of that. But has he grabbed the opportunity so far? I don’t think so, and there will be a lot of pressure on him.”
‘Will India look at continuity? They should…’
However, Kartik argued that the Indian management will also back Karun to come good, for the sake of continuity and wanting their decisions to reap some sort of reward. While Sai Sudharsan debuted in the first Test and was immediately dropped, Nair was given a longer rope given his experience – and that is a decision they will want to see through to fruition.
“Will India look at continuity? They should. Because if you are playing any player with some logic, you want the player to prove that right,” explained Kartik. “But it is also important to see if the player has converted the runs based on the experience. Has he done it? Maybe not. So it will be interesting to see what Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill think about him for the next game.”
India’s alternatives to Nair include the return of Sudharsan, who is a long-term prospect for the Indian team, as well as the inclusion of Dhruv Jurel, that might see some shuffling in the batting order. Alternatively, a long-time-coming debut for Abhimanyu Easwaran could also be under consideration.