Indian batsman Karun Nair was not included in India's initial Champions Trophy squad that was was announced last month. Later, on February 11, the BCCI selection committee under Ajit Agarkar announced the updated squad for the tournament including Varun Chakravarthy and Harshit Rana.
The BCCI named Harshit Rana as Jasprit Bumrah's replacement as the pacer was ruled out due to his persistent back injury. Meanwhile, Varun made the side at the expense of Yashasvi Jaiswal, after the former produced good performances in the ODI series against England.
Between all of this, Karun Nair's name was not taken into consideration. Nair finished with 779 runs from nine innings in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. He scored five centuries in the tournament and looked in supreme touch. Despite his rich vein of form in domestic cricket, Nair was denied a spot in the 15-member squad.
Ajit Agarkar, the Chairman of Selectors for BCCI came out with a statement after Nair's exclusion from the side. He said how he did not fit into India's scheme of things.
"At the moment, finding a spot in the squad in this team is really difficult. Look at the guys who have been picked. All average well in excess of mid-40s. Unfortunately, you can't fit everyone in a squad of 15. But those performances certainly make you take notice. If there is a loss of form (for a player) or injuries, there's certainly going to be a conversation around him," Agarkar had said.
A Clear Statement Was Given - Karun Nair On Ajit Agarkar
Now, in an interaction with Rev Sports, Karun Nair has responded to Ajit Agarkar's comments. He said that he was happy to find clarity in Agarkar's statement after being kept hopeful of making it to the squad.
"It was good to see that a clear statement was given, and I think he made it very clear that, you know, what their thinking was, which makes it easier for the player to understand where he needs to go and what he needs to do. For me at least, it is just about focusing on the next match and focusing on winning the Ranji Trophy at the moment," Karun Nair told RevSportz in an interview.
Vidarbha hammered Tamil Nadu by 198 runs in the quarterfinal of the Ranji Trophy. Nair was named the player of the match after scoring 122 runs in the first innings, which set up the team's clinical win. He spoke about his batting and his long-cherished dream of making a comeback for Team India.
"I have been batting the same way for the past 16-18 months. It was just about replicating whatever I was doing well, which I was fortunate enough to do over a consistent period. I have not made any changes to anything. It’s just 3-4 years of hard work on a consistent basis, going through the same process every single day, waking up every single day with one single thing in your head to go out there and play for your country. So, I think it’s all the 3-4 years of hard work or many more years of hard work that is coming into existence now," Nair concluded saying.
