Triple-centurion Karun Nair returns to national radar with India A selection

Karun Nairrsquos sensational 202425 domestic campaign has earned him a welldeserved place in the India A squad for the upcoming tour of England as announced on FridayRepresenting Vidarbha Nair enjoyed a prolific Ranji Trophy season amassing 863 runs across 16 innings at an average of 5393 His tally included four centuries and two fifties with a highest score of 135 coming in the tournament final which Vidarbha wonNairrsquos most eyecatching exploits however came in the Vijay Hazare Trophy where he dominated the oneday format He emerged as the tournaments topscorer piling up 779 runs in just eight innings at a staggering average of 38950 and a strike rate of 12404 His incredible run included five centuries and a highest score of 163 Though his side lost the final to his former team Karnataka Nairrsquos role in the campaign was pivotalIn the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Nair continued his purple patch in the T20 format as well scoring 255 runs at a strike rate of 17708 and an average of 4250 notching up three fifties with a best of 77 His team bowed out in the quarterfinals India Arsquos squad for tour of England announcedAll The Details mdash BCCI BCCI May 16 2025This revival in domestic cricket has rekindled the possibility of an India comeback for Nair who last donned the national jersey in 2017 He remains Indias only Test triple centurion after Virender SehwagIndia Arsquos tour to England includes two firstclass matches against England Lions scheduled at Canterbury and Northampton on May 30 and June 6 respectively followed by an intrasquad clash against Team India at Beckenham on June 13The squad will be captained by Bengal stalwart Abhimanyu Easwaran who boasts 7674 runs from 101 firstclass matches at an average of 4887 including 27 centuries Despite his underwhelming Australia tour last year he remains a cornerstone of the domestic circuitShubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan will join the squad ahead of the second match Both are in stellar form for Gujarat Titans scoring 508 and 509 runs respectively in IPL 2025Yashasvi Jaiswal Indias regular Test opener since 2023 is also part of the squad With 473 IPL runs this season and 391 in the recent BorderGavaskar Trophy he remains a key prospectThe squad also features Dhruv Jurel Nitish Kumar Reddy and Akash Deep all of whom impressed in the ongoing WTC cycle Nitishrsquos debut hundred at the MCG and Jurelrsquos consistency have been standout performances Ishan Kishan joins as the backup wicketkeeper having made his Test return after reentering BCCIrsquos central contract list this yearAllrounder Shardul Thakur who had a brilliant Ranji season 505 runs and 35 wickets makes his return Sarfaraz Khan and Ruturaj Gaikwad will look to make the most of the opportunityAmong bowlers Akash Deep 15 Test wickets Mukesh Kumar Anshul Kambhoj Khaleel Ahmed and Tushar Deshpande will lead the pace attack Spinbowling allrounders Manav Suthar Tanush Kotian and Harsh Dubey who claimed 69 wickets and scored 476 runs in Ranji complete the spin departmentHarshit Rana a consistent performer for KKR with 15 wickets in IPL 2025 also features adding depth to a promising squadInd A vs Eng A India A squad Abhimanyu Easwaran C Yashasvi Jaiswal Karun Nair Dhruv Jurel VC WK Nitish Kumar Reddy Shardul Thakur Ishan Kishan WK Manav Suthar Tanush Kotian Mukesh Kumar Akash Deep Harshit Rana Anshul Kamboj Khaleel Ahmed Ruturaj Gaikwad Sarfaraz Khan Tushar Deshpande Harsh DubeyatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params