“What crime has Karun Nair committed?” - Harbhajan Singh wants a longer rope for Karun Nair

Former Indian spinner and commentator Harbhajan Singh has backed Karun Nair to come out good in the upcoming fourth Test at Old Trafford in Manchester, scheduled to start on Wednesday, July 23.

Though Nair got good enough starts in the ongoing Test series against England, he couldn’t convert them into bigger knocks. Notably, Nair started the series at No.6 and later was promoted to the No.3 position, replacing Sai Sudharsan.

Nair’s scores in the ongoing series read - 0, 20, 31, 26, 40, and 14, amassing a total of 131 runs at an average of 22. However, Bhajji asserted that Nair should get a longer rope like Shubman Gill and KL Rahul.

“Yes, Karun has not scored runs, but if you gave him a chance, then persist with him for a while. All players deserve a fair chance. Karun deserves it now, and the likes of Shubman Gill and KL Rahul deserved it in the past,” Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel.

It’s important to note that Nair made a comeback to the Indian team after the gap of eight long years, courtesy of an exceptional domestic season for Vidarbha. He amassed 863 runs in nine Ranji Trophy 2024-25 games. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he accumulated 779 runs in just eight innings. Bhajji asserted that since India has persisted with Nair, they should play him in Manchester as well.

“So, the criteria should be the same for everyone. If others got five or sixes changes, then what crime has Karun committed? I feel that giving just one opportunity to Sai Sudharsan was not justified, but now that you have persisted with Karun till now, then play him here was well,” he added.

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