CHENNAI: Batting on 98, Karun Nair dispatched a delivery towards the boundary and leapt in the air in celebration as he brought up his 15th first-class century. The unconquered innings of 152 against Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday is one he will remember for a long time. It came at a critical juncture in his career and helped the team’s cause.
When asked if the monkey was off his back, Karun countered, “It was just that monkey was put on my back by others. I never really bothered about it. I just wanted to contribute and make the team win. There was no Ranji Trophy last season and I'd one bad season before that. In terms of white-ball cricket, I haven't done well enough in the opportunities I got. If I look back, I didn't have that many opportunities up the order to make big scores.”
Karun single-handedly carried the Karnataka innings on the day. While he was visibly pleased with his knock, he admitted that the team could have batted better. “Glad that I could make the start count. It was an important innings in terms of myself and the situation of the game. I think we lost around three wickets too many at the end of the day. We could have been 300/4 or 300/3 on this wicket,” he pointed out.
With the Ranji Trophy deferred and testing positive for Covid earlier in the month, Karun revealed he was short of practice. “I have not batted in the last two months and had only one net session. I have never come into a match less prepared,” he added.
