The latest news in and around the Indian cricket circuit was about this Karun Nairextremely superb batsman delivering back-to-back outstanding performances for his home team, Vidarbha u Vijay Hazare Trophy.
The 33-year-old is currently the top scorer in the prestigious tournament with an incredible 664 runs in 6 innings. Nair has so far scored 5 centuries in the tournament and has emerged as a major topic at the moment due to his outstanding performances with the bat.
However, Nair’s journey to this unblemished domestic record was never easy. Nair has been in the Indian domestic circuit for over a decade, starting his career for Karnataka in a first-class match against Punjab. Although the talent was obvious, the performances told a completely different story as his career never took off.
Kaun Nair is struggling with teams in domestic cricket
Nair represented Karnataka for several seasons. However, the 33-year-old was dropped from the squad during the 2022-23 season. Frustrated with his lack of playing time, Nair moved from Karnataka to focus on getting more playing time. The best batsman decided to play for Vidarbha and got off to a flying start for the team by becoming Vidarbha’s top scorer in the Ranji Trophy season.
Also read: Will Karun Nair play for India again? Selectors delighted with his heroics at Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25
Karun Nair’s IPL journey
Karun Nair made his IPL debut during the 2012 season with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). He played for RCB for two seasons before moving to Rajasthan Royals (RR)where he spent two consecutive years. In 2016 he joined Delhi Capitals (DC)where he stayed for two seasons. After being released by the Capitals in 2018, Naira was acquired Punjab Kings (PBKS)where he played for three seasons. His IPL journey took him to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) 2021 for one season, after which he returned to the Royals in 2022. After the 2022 season, Nair decided to take a break from the IPL to focus on improving his batting skills. His hiatus ended when he returned in 2025, after the Capitals re-signed him for the upcoming season.
Karuna Nair is paid by IPL
Nair’s IPL earnings started modestly, starting with INR 8 lakh per season at RCB. His salary went up when he moved to the Royals in 2014, where he earned Rs 75 lakh a year for two years. His move to the Capitals in 2016 brought a significant increase to 4 crore rupees per season. From 2018 to 2020, Nair was a part of Punjab Kings, earning 5.6 crore rupees per year. In 2021, he joined KKR for ₹50 lakh before returning to Royals in 2022 for ₹1.4 crore. His 2025 contract with Delhi Capitals was for 50 lakhs, with a base salary of 30 lakhs. During his IPL career, Nair collected a total of 28.86 crore rupees.
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