India head coach Gautam Gambhir has hinted that Karun Nair could possibly be part of the playing eleven in their first Test against England at Headingley on June 2o but both him and new captain Shubman Gill remained tight-lipped on what the batting order could look like. It means that, among other things, there is yet to be any clarity on who will take up the spots left vacant by Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, both of whom retired from Tests last month.
Gambhir said that Nair’s inclusion is a great message for youngsters to keep striving in domestic cricket. “It’s just great for domestic cricket,” said Gambhir in a press conference that he and Gill addressed before the Indian team left for England. The five-match Test series will be Gill’s first as captain of the red-ball side.
“All the youngsters will know its importance. If you keep doing well there, doors are never shut for you. It’s always good to have the experience of Karun, he played County cricket there and he is in really good form. His experience will come in handy. More importantly, we won’t judge someone by one or two Test matches. If someone has scored heaps of runs, he will be given a decent run.”
Nair’s inclusion comes on the back of a prolific domestic season in all formats. He also took that form into the IPL for the Delhi Capitals and to the ongoing India A tour of England. Nair added even more heft to his cause by blasting 208 in 281 balls over the first two days of the unofficial Test against the England Lions.
We will decide once we go there: Gill
Gill, meanwhile, said that the team is yet to make a decision on the makeup of the batting order. “We haven’t really decided on the (batting order). We still have some time, we will be playing an intra-squad and have a 10-day camp in London. We will decide the batting order once we go there,” he said.
Gill himself is among the candidates to fill in for both Rohit and Kohli as Yashasvi Jaiswal’s opening partner and at No.4 respectively. Apart from him, KL Rahul is also a strong contender for the opener’s spot after his strong showing in Australia earlier this year. Abhimanyu Easwaran is another candidate for batting at the top of the order while Nair is a potential fit at No.4.