Karun Nair’s hopes to continue in Indian Test squad took a hit on Wednesday in Manchester as he was dropped from the playing XI for the fourth Test against England. He was replaced by Sai Sudharsan. In addition to Nair’s exclusion, India made two other changes. Anshul Kamboj, a debutant, replaced Nitish Kumar Reddy, while Shardul Thakur came in for the injured Akash Deep.

After an eight-year absence from international cricket, Nair returned to the Indian National Cricket Team, thanks to a standout Ranji Trophy season. His inclusion in the team was quickly validated with a double century in the India A tour match before the series. However, his return was marred by underwhelming performances, as he managed just 131 runs from six innings at an average of 21.83, without scoring a single half-century.

India ultimately grew frustrated with Nair’s performance and decided to exclude him from the squad for the Manchester Test. Sudharsan, who was benched after the first match in Leeds, returned to the XI. The left-handed batter managed 0 and 30 in Headingley.

During an interview with JioStar, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar shared his thoughts on Nair’s heartfelt tweet from December 2022, where he pleaded for another opportunity. He stated that while cricket did offer Nair another shot at proving his worth, he couldn’t seize the opportunity when it came.

“It was an emotional moment when he asked, ‘Cricket, give me another chance.’ Cricket did offer him that chance, but sadly, he couldn’t catch it. Now, with Sai Sudharsan returning, that’s the situation. It’s great to see Sai Sudharsan back, as I had felt he should have been part of the second test too,” he said.