India head coach Gautam Gambhir opened up on the inclusion of Karun Nair in the Shubman Gill-led Test squad for the upcoming red-ball series against England. Gambhir said that the Karnataka batter's county experience and form in English conditions would be valuable for the team.
Gambhir and India's newly-appointed Test captain Shubman Gill were addressing a press conference ahead of the Indian team's departure to England. Nair has been named in India's Test squad which will start from June 20. . The 33-year-old has earned a recall to the Test setup for the first time in seven years, after a great show in domestic cricket.
"It's great for domestic cricket. It's great for the future of domestic cricket. All the youngsters who are playing domestic will understand its importance: 'if you keep doing well in domestic cricket, doors are never shut'," Gambhir said.
Nair, who travelled to England last month, began his tour with a double ton for Abhimanyu Easwaran-led India A in the first of two unofficial Tests against the England Lions in Canterbury.
"It's good to have the experience of Karun, who has played a bit of County cricket. He has scored runs there and hit a double hundred for India A. It's always good to have players who are in good form on these kinds of tours.
"His experience will definitely come in handy, and hopefully he can deliver.
"More importantly, we will not judge someone by one or two Tests. You guys can. We won’t. I think if someone has scored heaps of runs, he will be given a good run at this level as well so that he can showcase his talent here," Gambhir added.
The upcoming Test series will be India's first red-ball assignment after the five Test match series in Australia last year, where Pat Cummins-led side defeated the Men in Blue 3-1 to seal their spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.