After a successful stint with Vidarbha, Karun Nair is set to return to his home team Karnataka for the upcoming 2025–26 domestic cricket season. Nair, currently touring England with the Indian Test team, has received a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Vidarbha Cricket Association, confirming the move.
Nair’s Form Sparks Karnataka Comeback
Nair‘s return marks a significant homecoming three seasons after his last appearance for Karnataka. His performance with Vidarbha helped revitalize his career, culminating in a recall to the Indian Test squad after eight years.
During Vidarbha’s victorious Ranji Trophy campaign earlier this year, Nair was instrumental, scoring 863 runs in 16 innings at an average of 53.93, including four centuries. His century in the final against Kerala played a pivotal role in securing Vidarbha’s third Ranji title.
“𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒂 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆,” 𝒂 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝑵𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅. “𝑯𝒆’𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑲𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒂 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒚.”
In fact, Kerala had shown interest in signing Nair after his fallout with Karnataka during the 2021–22 season.
Dominance in Vijay Hazare Trophy
Nair also made headlines in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he captained Vidarbha to a runners-up finish. He scored a stunning 779 runs in eight innings, including five consecutive centuries, at a strike rate of 124.01. He also set a new List A record for most runs (542) without being dismissed.
“𝑲𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏’𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒚,” 𝒂 𝑽𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒃𝒉𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅. “𝑯𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉-𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒓.”
Karnataka Faces Selection Dilemma
Despite a dip in form during the current England tour—where he managed scores of 0, 20, 31, 26, 40, and 14—Nair returns to a Karnataka squad brimming with young batting talent. The emergence of R Smaran, KL Shrijith, and KV Aneesh adds to the competition for top-order slots.
Smaran led Karnataka’s run charts in the last Ranji season with 516 runs in ten innings, while Shrijith made a century on his first-class debut. With Mayank Agarwal likely to continue as captain and Devdutt Padikkal locked in as an opener, the team management faces tough selection calls.
This move could also reflect a slight shift in Karnataka’s strategy, which had previously focused on youth development—evidenced by the exits of K Gowtham and Manish Pandey.
V Koushik Moves to Goa
In another significant domestic transfer, seamer V Koushik has been granted an NOC by Karnataka to join Goa for the new season. A late bloomer who made his Ranji debut at 27 in 2019–20, Koushik has been a key figure in Karnataka’s bowling lineup in recent years.
He finished as Karnataka’s leading wicket-taker in the 2024–25 Ranji Trophy, grabbing 23 wickets in seven matches at an average of 18.73, including two five-wicket hauls. His departure marks the end of an era for Karnataka’s fast-bowling unit, which had already lost veterans like Vinay Kumar, Mithun, and Aravind.
Also Read: Aakash Chopra Questions Selection as Kamboj Replaces Harshit Rana
