‘Inexplicable’: Karun Nair takes subtle dig at South Zone after being ignored in Duleep Trophy final | cricket news
Karnataka batsman Karun Nair has dealt a subtle but direct blow to the South Zone after being overlooked for the playing XI in the ongoing Duleep Trophy final against the East Zone at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.Nair, who was part of the South Zone squad, was left out of the XI for both the semi-final and final. After a post on X (formerly Twitter) described his omission as “inexplicable”, Nair reposted it with his own response.“Inexplicable would be an understatement,” he wrote, accompanied by a laughing emoji.
The struggle of the Southern Zone as Ishan Kishan produces 270
Nair’s omission has become an even bigger talking point after the South Zone bowling attack struggled to contain the East Zone in the final.East Zone resumed the second innings at 385/4 and continued to dominate from the start. South Zone took the new ball after one over, hoping that Mohammad Siraj and MD Nidheesh could advance early, but neither managed to break the partnership between Ishan Kishan and Kumar Kushagra.Kishan immediately attacked Siraj and Nidheesh, while Kushagra provided strong support from the other end. South Zone subsequently turned to Tripurana Vijay and Shreyas Gopal but the change in bowling did little to stop the scoring.Kushagra finally completed his sixth first-class century, scoring 101 off 132 balls with eight fours and five sixes before falling to Vijay shortly before lunch.Kishan then took full control of the innings.The captain of the East Zone repeatedly found the limit and took advantage of a tiring attack from the South Zone. Even the addition of part-timers Devdutt Padikkal and Shaikh Rasheed failed to stop him.Kishan reached his double century off 270 balls and continued to attack, surpassing 250 before retiring briefly due to fatigue.
Kishan is 30 years away from reaching the triple century
The East Zone finally crossed 600 and then moved towards the 700-run mark. Mohammed Shami’s quickfire 28 helped bring the total closer to the mark before his dismissal brought Kishan back into the box.The East Zone captain returned with a triple century in sight, but South Zone finally managed to remove him before he could reach the milestone.Kishan was caught near the long boundary for an impressive 270 off 334 balls, an innings that contained 30 fours and seven sixes. His score ranks as the eighth-highest individual entry in Duleep Trophy history.The East Zone was eventually dismissed for 708, recording a total of over 700 at Chepauk for the third time in the history of first-class cricket.The mammoth scoreline has put East Zone firmly in control of the final and added another layer to the questions surrounding Nair’s omission.Meanwhile, for Nair, his brief response on social media has made his feeling of being left out quite clear, particularly after the South Zone bowling attack failed to contain Kishan and Kushagra in the final.
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