With a scorching 89 off 40 and a 22-ball half-century for the Delhi Capitals against the Mumbai Indians on April 13, Karun Nair made his comeback to the Indian Premier League in the most valiant manner possible. After Jake Fraser-McGurk was dismissed early, Nair entered the game as an impact substitute and faced a scorching MI bowling attack, reaching his first IPL fifty in seven years. Fraser-McGurk's lean patch extended with a golden duck off Deepak Chahar's very first ball, dealing DC a serious blow as they chased 206 against MI.
After a few sighters, Nair quickly emerged as the impact substitute and started to replicate his scorching domestic form, but this time in the IPL and against a strong MI bowling lineup that included Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, breakout pacer Ashwani Kumar, and an in-form Hardik Pandya.
Bumrah and Nair involved in tense episode
Because of the batting-friendly circumstances, the 29th IPL 2025 match between the Delhi Capitals (DC) and Mumbai Indians (MI) ended up being a high-scoring thriller with plenty of boundaries and sixes. However, a heated argument between pace ace Jasprit Bumrah and seasoned Indian hitter Karun Nair took one moment away from the bat-and-ball action that captured the interest of the crowd.
Karun Nair, who was batting comfortably at 48, took on Bumrah's last delivery and attempted to sneak a second run in the sixth over of the DC innings. Nair unintentionally ran into Bumrah on the second run. After finishing the run, he apologized right away, but the incident seemed to cause tension.
In the ensuing strategic timeout, Bumrah and Nair were observed engaging in a lively conversation. Later, Nair was seen on video outlining the circumstances to MI captain Hardik Pandya, who seemed to defuse the situation by indicating that it was appropriate. The brief scuffle reminded everyone of the strong emotions involved in high-stakes events like the IPL and added a little drama to an otherwise enjoyable interaction.
Karun Nair was later dismissed by Mitchell Santner, but his 40-ball 89 runs knock kept Delhi Capitals in the chase and provided them the spot where chasing did not seem too difficult.