Karnataka batter Karun Nair has taken a subtle but pointed swipe at South Zone after being overlooked for the playing XI in the ongoing Duleep Trophy final against East Zone at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.Nair, who was part of the South Zone squad, was left out of the XI for both the semi-final and the final. After a post on X (formerly Twitter) described his omission as ‘inexplicable’, Nair reposted it with his own response.‘Inexplicable would be an understatement,’ he wrote, accompanied by a laughing emoji.
Karun Nair’s Post
The decision has gained further attention after South Zone endured a difficult first two days of the final, with East Zone piling up 708 runs before being bowled out.Nair did not remain with the South Zone squad after learning that he would not feature in the final. Instead, he returned home to join the Karnataka State Cricket Association’s pre-season red-ball camp.The batter then made an immediate impact, scoring a century for KSCA Secretary XI against Chhattisgarh.South Zone have not provided an explanation for Nair’s omission from the playing XI for the final. His absence had already raised eyebrows before the previous match against North Zone, when captain Tilak Varma explained that Nair’s exclusion was a tactical call.At the time, Varma said Nair was ‘just unlucky’ after opting for Hyderabad’s left-handed batter Kodimela Himateja in the middle order.“Karun is just unlucky. He has scored a lot of runs in domestic seasons,” Tilak had said while addressing the media at the CoE.“I have chosen Himateja in place of Karun as they have good left-arm spinners. So we wanted a leftie in the middle order. He has also scored a decent amount of runs in domestic cricket. I was just backing him. As a youngster, he also has a good career. At the same time, it is very unfortunate for Karun.”However, Himateja’s opportunity did not work out. He was dismissed for a two-ball duck and subsequently dropped for the final.South Zone replaced him with another left-hander, Devdutt Padikkal, rather than bringing Nair back into the XI.
South Zone struggle as Ishan Kishan produces 270
The omission of Nair has become an even bigger talking point after South Zone’s bowling attack struggled to contain East Zone in the final.East Zone resumed the second innings on 385/4 and continued to dominate from the outset. South Zone took the new ball after one over, hoping Mohammad Siraj and MD Nidheesh could make early inroads, but neither managed to break the partnership between Ishan Kishan and Kumar Kushagra.Kishan immediately attacked Siraj and Nidheesh, while Kushagra provided strong support from the other end. South Zone subsequently turned to Tripurana Vijay and Shreyas Gopal, but the change in bowling did little to halt the scoring.Kushagra eventually completed his sixth first-class century, making 101 from 132 balls with eight fours and five sixes before falling to Vijay shortly before lunch.Kishan then took complete control of the innings.The East Zone captain repeatedly found the boundary and took advantage of a tiring South Zone attack. Even the introduction of part-timers Devdutt Padikkal and Shaikh Rasheed failed to slow him down.Kishan reached his double century from 270 balls and continued attacking, moving beyond 250 before briefly retiring because of fatigue.
Kishan falls 30 short of triple century
East Zone eventually crossed 600 and then moved towards the 700-run mark. Mohammed Shami’s quickfire 28 helped push the total closer to the landmark before his dismissal brought Kishan back to the crease.The East Zone skipper returned with a triple century in sight, but South Zone finally managed to remove him before he could reach the milestone.Kishan was caught near the long-on boundary for a stunning 270 off 334 balls, an innings containing 30 fours and seven sixes. His score ranks as the eighth-highest individual innings in Duleep Trophy history.East Zone were eventually dismissed for 708, registering a total above 700 at Chepauk for only the third time in first-class cricket history.The mammoth score has put East Zone firmly in control of the final and added another layer to the questions surrounding Nair’s omission.For Nair, meanwhile, his brief response on social media has made his feelings about being left out fairly clear, particularly after South Zone’s bowling attack was unable to contain Kishan and Kushagra in the final.
