Nair was overlooked for the Champions Trophy despite his prolific run in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Nair had strengthened his selection claims by scoring 779 runs at an unreal average of 389.50 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25. The Vidarbha captain was dismissed only twice in the domestic 50-over tournament.
Out of the nine matches, Nair batted in eight innings and returned with scores of 112*, 44*, 163*, 111*, 112, 122*, 88* and 27.
When the Champions Trophy squad was picked before the VHT final, Nair’s average was 752 and even the legendary Sachin Tendulkar lauded his consistency. However, the 33-year-old failed to break into India’s squad.
During the squad announcement presser, chief selector Ajit Agarkar had acknowledged that it was a tough call to leave Nair out while also adding that they can't fit everyone in a squad of 15.
saying the chairman of selectors made it very clear and praised the latter for being clear in his messaging.
In an interview with RevSportz, Karun Nair has now reacted to Agarkar's comments, praising the clarity the chairman of selectors had in his messaging.
"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," Nair said.
"For me, at least, it is just about focusing on the next match and focusing on winning the Ranji Trophy at the moment. 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," he added.
Speaking further, Nair said, "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."
Recently, Karun Nair led Vidarbha to the Ranji Trophy semi-finals. Vidarbha will now face Mumbai in the last-four clash, beginning on February 17 at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur.
As far as the Champions Trophy is concerned, India will open their campaign on February 20 against Bangladesh at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.