India and Vidarbha batsman Karun Nair is in terrific form with the bat in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25. Recently, Nair set a world record by scoring 542 runs in List A cricket without being dismissed.
After this achievement, Nair became the batsman with the highest no. runs in List A cricket without dismissal. Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa was very impressed with Karun Nair’s recent performances with the bat.
Uthappa praised Nair’s rich form and even considered him for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, which will start in the month of February. Although Nair has attracted attention in domestic cricket, it remains to be seen whether he will be considered for the main ICC tournament.
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Karun Nair gets support from Robin Uthappa
After Karun Nair set a world record, he got the backing of Robin Uthappa for a place in the Indian team for the Champions Trophy in 2025. Uthappa called Nair “unstoppable” and backed him for the Champions Trophy.
“Unstoppable. And every inning counts. If that’s not a statement for a place in the #ChampionsTrophy2025 squad, then I don’t know what is!” Nair posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Unstoppable. And every inning counts. If it is not a statement for a place in #ChampionsTrophy2025 squad then I don’t know what it is! #Indian team https://t.co/lgk9zEDlOJ
— Robbie Uthappa (@robbieuthappa) January 4, 2025
Both Robin Uthappa and Karun Nair played cricket for Karnataka during the initial part of their careers. However, Nair left Karnataka a few years ago and now plays cricket for Vidarbha. He is currently leading Vidarbha in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Fourth hundred in last five innings
He scored four hundreds in his last five List A innings and was dismissed only once. His last five innings read 112*, 44*, 163*, 111* and 112. Nair will look to continue his good form with the bat and carry Vidarbha till the end.
Karun Nair’s last knock of 112 came against Uttar Pradesh where he was dismissed for the first time in the last five innings. Earlier, he won the toss and put Uttar Pradesh on top.
The batting from Uttar Pradesh started but many of them failed to convert them into big ones. There were plenty of thirties and twenties in the scoreboard, but apart from Sameer Rizvi, not a single batsman managed to cross the fifty-run mark.
Rizvi smashed a magnificent 105 off just 82 balls and hit 5 fours and 7 sixes during the knock. Bowling all-rounder Shivam Mavi gave the innings a late boost with 33 off just 20 balls to move to 307-8 in 50 overs.
Karun Nair leads Vidarbha to a fantastic win
In reply, Vidarbha started brilliantly as Yash Rathod and Dhruv Shorey gave them a good start. Shorey was dismissed but Nair strengthened the innings and took full advantage of his good form. The Vidarbha skipper scored 112 off just 101 balls to take his team to the brink of victory.
He hit 11 fours and 2 sixes during the knock. However, Vidarbha reached the target when wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma fired a quick 7-ball-19 to end the game. Rathod remained unbeaten with 138 off 140 deliveries.
He has been absent from the Indian national team for some time now. His last international match was way back in 2017 in a test match against Australia. This will make his selection for the Champions Trophy difficult.
