Karun Nair responds to Duleep Trophy snub with X-top century

Karun Nair responded to a second consecutive Duleep Trophy snub with a century in Bengaluru on Monday after being left out of the South Zone final against the East Zone, sending a message to the X-tip.

Nair, who has played 10 Tests for India, made 104 off 183 balls, with 12 fours and a six, for the KSCA XI against Chhattisgarh in the Dr (Capt) K Thimmappaiah Memorial Tournament at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The century came on the same day that Nair was once again overlooked by South Zone, who face East Zone in the final of the Duleep Trophy in Chennai. East Zone scored a mammoth 708 in their first innings with Ishan Kishan scoring 270.

Nair was also left out of the South Zone semi-final against the North Zone last week. The seasoned batsman is the most experienced player in the current South Zone squad and has scored 699 runs for Karnataka in the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season.

In response to a social media post describing his suspension as “inexplicable”, Nair wrote on X: “Inexplicable would be an understatement.

South zone coach Vikram Verma explained that the team combination was behind Nair’s omission in the semi-finals.

“We actually went with a good combination because each team has two left-handers. So we thought a left-handed batsman in the middle order would give us a good chance to dominate them,” Verma said.

“So again we thought about what is best for the team. Now that Devdutt Padikkal is back, there was the question of the team combination. It is very difficult to overlook him (Karun) but we have such a combination.”

Nair left the South Zone camp for Bengaluru on Sunday evening. Verma attributed his absence to personal reasons.

“He returned home for personal reasons. He sent us an email and took permission to travel for family reasons,” he said.

However, Nair’s appearance for Secretary’s XI in Bengaluru came as he continued to be left out of the South Zone’s Duleep Trophy campaign.

Kodimel Himatej was replaced by Nair in the semi-final but failed to score in the match. He was subsequently dropped for the final, Devdutt Padikkal returned to the XI.

Nair’s century ensured Secretary’s XI finished the opening day of their match against Chhattisgarh at 277 for 9 after 90 overs.

The knock also came at a time when the South Zone was struggling to contain the East Zone batting. With 708 already on boardSouth face an uphill task in the final, although Verma insisted his team remained in the competition.

“Our plan is to play session after session and build partnerships to bat five sessions from today so we can catch up (the East total of 708),” he said.

– The end

Issued by:

Saurabh Kumar

Published on:

07 Sep 2026 22:46 IST