The 25-year-old boy, Karun Nair made history on Day 4 of the fifth Test between India and England in Chennai. He became the second Indian top scorer batsman to make a test triple century as the hosts piled a huge first innings score of 759/7d. Back in March 2008, the MA Chidambaram Stadium spoke for the first triple-hundred on Indian soil, as Virender Sehwag cracked 319 runs against South Africa in Chennai.
Eight-and-a-half years later, the stadium’s reshaped stands became the backdrop to the first triple-ton by any Indian batsman apart from Sehwag, as Karun Nair who scored a brilliant and finished on 303, not out.
This match was not Nair’s first triple-century in first-class cricket, he had already made one for his state of Karnataka in Mumbai, which he described as “more taxing” than this unbeaten 303 as he had to bat for longer.
“That’s the best knock of my life. I had to play differently depending on who was batting. They kept encouraging me and I want to thank them. I think it will take a couple of days for myself to sink it in. The dressing room atmosphere has always been really good and they have always backed me in whatever I have done,” Karun Nair said at the end of the day in a press conference.
Nair, was born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, when his father was posted there as an engineer. His parents are from Bangalore, where Karun grew up and his mother was worked as a school teacher. Nair (right-handed) made his debut in the third Test against England at Mohali when KL Rahul was injured and was run out for four, in this Test match Lokesh Rahul missed 200 by a single run while his friend made a history (unbeaten 303).
Nair is the third player to convert their first Test hundred into a triple ton, he is also the fourth Test batsman to score a triple-century batting at No.5 after Sir Don Bradman (304 in Leeds in the 1934 Ashes), Michael Clarke (329 not out against India) and Brendon McCullum.
Karun Nair was playing in just the third Test match of his career, started day four of the match in Chennai unbeaten on 71. The right-hander brought up his maiden century in the morning session from 185 balls and continued expertly converting it into a double by taking just 121 balls and in the evening he moved from 200 to 300 in just 75 deliveries. Reaching the milestone off just 381 balls, Nair brought up the milestone with his tremendous 32 boundaries and four sixes to finish in his verve-filled innings of unbeaten score 303.
Previous Indian captains Sourav Ganguly and Sunil Gavaskar were pleased by Nair’s lusty performance. After he became the second Indian to score a triple century stating the middle-order batsman reminded them of their mythical compatriots.
“It was a terrific knock. It reminded me of Virender Sehwag. But they cannot be compared as with Viru (Sehwag)’s was scored in a different time of cricket and when the team was in a different situation,” Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly said.
Karun became the third player to convert his maiden Test hundred into a triple century, joining the West Indies legend sir “Garry Sobers” (365 not out against Pakistan in 1958) and former Australia captain Bob Simpson (311 against England in 1964).
