On a tricky green pitch under overcast conditions, Karun Nair hit a fighting unbeaten 52 and took India to 204/6 in 64 overs at stumps on day one of the fifth Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test against England at The Oval.
For Nair, the opportunity to script his redemption story begins now, as he finds himself in the Playing XI for the first Test in Leeds.
India batter Karun Nair, who is eyeing a return to the national Test side after an eight-year hiatus, revealed in a recent interview that he was once advised by a senior cricketer to retire and focus solely on T20 leagues for financial security.
Nair has been in phenomenal form and struck a double ton against the England Lions in the first unofficial Test at Canterbury.
Nair, who began batting from his overnight score of 186 runs, resumed with the same confidence on Saturday morning before getting to the landmark in 273 deliveries. He finally ended up on 204, which included 26 boundaries and a massive six.
The 45-year-old's term recently came to an end.
Karun Nair has played under Dravid in two Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises -- Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Daredevils.
It will be an interesting battle between the Bengal pacers and the likes of Rahul, Karun Nair, Manish Pandey and 19-year-old Devdutt Padikkal.
Mayank, 28, has played nine Tests so far, scoring 872 runs with three hundreds, including two double centuries, and three fifties to his name.
The 28-year-old is now the fourth Indian batsman after Karun Nair, Vinod Kambli and Dilip Sardesai to convert their maiden Test tons into a double century.
