India lost the first Test against South Africa, and dropped down a spot in the WTC points table.
As we discuss, India are battling another batting collapse against South Africa in Guwahati. With just five pure batters, the hosts are trailing by 300+ runs with only three wickets in hand. A follow-on looks unavoidable, while Karun Nair, who was sidelined for selection in Tests, has expressed his pain of missing out.
Reacting on X (formerly Twitter), Karun Nair wrote, “Some conditions carry a feel you know by heart — and the silence of not being out there adds its own sting.”
India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired from international cricket last year in Australia, responded to Nair’s post.
“Adei” in Tamil or ‘arey’ in Hindi is simply an expression to further lay emphasis on Nair’s tweet over India’s collapse.
Led by Rishabh Pant in the second Test, Sai Sudharsan took the No.3 spot, while Dhruv Jurel walked out at No.4, followed by the skipper. But after the sixth position onwards, India have only all-rounders lined up, rather, bowlers who can bat. The line-up continued with Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Washington Sundar, who was sent to bat at No.3 in the previous Test, is currently batting from the eighth spot. He’s unbeaten on the crease with 33 off 66, partnering with Kuldeep Yadav (14 off 82). India have put up 174/7 on the scoreboard in 67 overs.
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Playing in only his third Test in 2016, Karun Nair had struck an unbeaten 303 in Chennai against England. However, in the next three Tests, he could amass only 54 runs. But what followed was worse than miserable.
Karun Nair was kept away from India Test jersey for eight years. His infamous tweet of begging cricket to give him a second chance was manifested in 2025 in England. He didn’t have the best of tours, scoring about 200 runs in eight innings with a top score of 57. Nair returned as India’s seventh-highest top-scorer, easily above the other option – Sai Sudharsan. The latter scored 140 runs in six innings, but he was chosen for the Tests at home against the West Indies and South Africa.
Karun Nair will turn 34 years old next week. But he’s still going strong in the longest format of the game. Simply looking at his last five matches in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25, he has made 95, 15, 4, 233, 174*, 8, and 73. It’s bizarre to watch the Karnataka batter being sidelined. The 24-year-old definitely deserves more chances, given that he has age on his side. But speaking numbers, Sudharsan has struck a hundred for India A in recent times, and made a top score of 87 against the West Indies.
Maybe what Sudharsan needs is more time spent in First-Class cricket, while Nair holds the fort for India at No.3. Speaking of chances, it’s not tough to conclude that Nair has been overlooked. While it’s favourable for a young player to get a chance in a relatively younger Test team, Karun Nair brings a rare experience as a Test specialist.
After the first Test loss, the Proteas jumped to the second spot, while Shubman Gill & Co. dropped down to the fourth position in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table for the ongoing 2025-27 cycle.
With the T20 World Cup 2026 and ODI World Cup 2027 on the horizon, the focus will move to the white-ball formats of the game. India are not due to play another Test series soon. Their next red-ball assignments could be away matches in Sri Lanka and New Zealand. If India are to have a chance to play their third WTC final, they must make major changes, starting with the squad selection and playing XI.
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