India veteran batter Karun Nair made his Test comeback after a long 3,006-day gap during the first Test match of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 at Headingley in Leeds. He was added to India's squad after a superb performance in domestic cricket, but was unable to replicate that form at the highest level.
Nair was dismissed for a duck in the first innings and followed it up with 20 in the second, as India slipped to defeat. The Karnataka batter showed glimpses of form in Birmingham and at Lord’s, where he got starts in both matches but once again failed to build on them. He was excluded from India's playing XI for the fourth Test match in Manchester and made his comeback in fifth, replacing Sai Sudharsan.
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When Nair was left out of the playing XI for the fourth Test, it seemed that his second innings in international cricket might end abruptly. However, his half-century in the final Test has given him a chance to remain in contention ahead of the home season.
India are set to host the West Indies in October, followed by South Africa in November. There are also two India A series lined up against visiting Australia A and South Africa A sides, for which Nair may come into consideration. However, Nair is not allowing himself to look too far ahead.
“I am not thinking too far forward. I am taking it day by day, working on my game and on the learnings from the last series. As time goes on, we will see what happens,” Karun Nair told PTI.
“For me, it’s about improving every single day — both in terms of skills and fitness,” he added.
Nair believes that the new generation of Indian players will shine in the ongoing 2025–27 World Test Championship cycle, which began with a morale-boosting drawn series in England.
India's young players, including new captain Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant, had an impressive series, including senior players such as KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja.
“Yes, we’ve made a strong start. We played well throughout the series, but it’s important to maintain this momentum, keep doing the things we did right against England, and improve in the areas where we need to.
“We as players are trying to improve day by day, and hopefully we can do well in this cycle,” Nair said.
The five-Test match series of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 ended 2-2 draw as England won the first and third clashes and the Shubman Gill-led side came victorious in the second and fifth Test. The fourth Test ended in a draw.