Karun Nair ne England tour ke pehle din hi Test case ke liye solid dhamaka kiya, 186* maar ke England Lions ke bowlers ki waat laga di. Sarfaraz Khan aur Dhruv Jurel ne bhi apna jhanda gaada, dono ne steady half-centuries thoki – Jurel toh 82* pe abhi bhi tikka hai, bowlers ko rula raha hai.
Karun Nair ne St. Lawrence Ground, Canterbury mein India A ke liye pehle din 90 overs mein 409/3 bana ke Lions ke bowlers ko nanga kar diya. No. 3 pe batting karte hue, Nair ne apni class dikhayi, 246 balls pe ekdum shandar drives aur shots ke saath unbeaten 186 banaye. Iske domestic season mein 2024-25 Ranji Trophy mein 863 runs aur Vijay Hazare Trophy mein 779 runs, with four aur five centuries, ne selectors ka dimaag ghuma diya. Test team mein wapas aane ke liye yeh innings ekdum perfect dhamaka tha, especially jab usne 2016 mein England ke khilaaf 303* maara tha, aur ab 8 saal baad comeback ke liye josh dikhaya.
Sarfaraz Khan ne bhi apna dum dikhaya, 92 runs maar ke selectors ko thenga dikhaya. Bhai ka 119 balls ka innings ekdum jhakaas tha, with powerful shots aur thodi si cheeky style, lekin century se thodi si kami reh gayi. Nair ke saath 181 runs ka third-wicket partnership ne Lions ke bowlers ka band bajaya. Sarfaraz ka Test squad se bahar hona thoda controversial tha, jabki usne 2024 mein debut pe twin fifties aur New Zealand ke khilaaf ek 150 maara tha. Fir bhi, selectors ne Nair ko chuna, aur X pe log bol rahe hain, “Sarfaraz ko chance do, yaar!”
Dhruv Jurel ne bhi apna swag dikhaya, 82* off 104 balls, ekdum calm aur confident. Nair ke saath unbeaten 177-run partnership ne Lions ke bowlers ko poori tarah hara diya. Jurel ka fifty, with a crispy cover drive, ne sabko dikha diya ke woh Test ke liye ready hai. Wicketkeeper-batter hone ke bawajood, usne English conditions mein apna game top level pe rakha.
Lions ke bowlers, jaise Josh Hull (2/51) aur Eddie Jack (1/51), poore din struggle karte rahe. Shuru mein Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) aur Abhimanyu Easwaran (8) ko jaldi out kiya, lekin Nair, Sarfaraz, aur Jurel ke saamne unki ek na chali. Lions ka attack thoda weak pada, aur India A ne unko poora dominate kiya.
Nair ka yeh knock dil se dil tak gaya, kyunki 2016 ke triple century ke baad usko Test team se door rakha gaya. 2022 mein uska X post, “Dear cricket, give me one more chance,” viral hua tha, aur ab usne apne bat se jawab diya. X pe log bol rahe hain, “Nair ka 186* ekdum burnol moment hai haters ke liye!” Sarfaraz ke liye thoda dukh hua, kyunki usne 10 kg weight loss kiya aur domestic mein runs ka pahad khada kiya, fir bhi squad mein nahi aaya. Gavaskar ne kaha, “Sarfaraz, Nair se seekh, bhai, aur mehnat kar!”
Jurel ka performance bhi ekdum solid tha, aur ab Test team ke liye competition badi tight hai. Shubman Gill captain hai, Rishabh Pant vice-captain, aur naye players jaise Sai Sudharsan aur Arshdeep Singh bhi line mein hain. Nair, Sarfaraz, aur Jurel ne Day 1 pe apna case itna strong kar diya ke selectors ke liye ab sar dard hone wala hai.
