Gautam Gambhir on Karun Nair’s selection for England Tests: ‘His experience will be valuable’

Following his double-ton in the first unofficial Test match between the India A and England Lions, Gautam Gambhir has spoken out about Karun Nair‘s return to the Test cricket scheme of things. Gambhir said that Nair’s victory was “great for domestic cricket” during a meeting with Shubman Gill, the new Test captain, and India’s head coach before they left for England.

The younger players need to understand the value of competing at the local level since it might lead to their national selection, according to the Indian coach. Karun Nair background playing county cricket will benefit India during the tour, Gautam Gambhir added. In England, Karun Nair will be given more responsibility when veteran players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not present.

“For domestic cricket, it’s simply fantastic. Every child will understand its significance. Doors will never close for you if you continue to perform well there. Having Karun’s experience is always beneficial. There, he participated in County cricket, and he is playing quite well right now. During the press conference prior to India’s tour of England, Gambhir stated that his expertise would be useful.

One or two Test matches won’t be used to evaluate someone: Gautam Gambhir

Gambhir affirmed that the players will be given a regular run and believed that the Indian management does not evaluate the players based on their results in a few games.

More significantly, we won’t use one or two Test matches to evaluate someone. Someone who has scored a lot of runs will be given a fair run so that he may demonstrate his abilities on the global stage,” Gambhir continued.

Karun was the leading scorer in the inaugural unofficial Test match against the England Lions, scoring 204 runs in 273 deliveries, including 26 fours and a six. During the 2024–25 domestic cricket season, he hit runs on a regular basis, earning him a place in India’s squad for the first time since 2017.