Duleep Trophy: Tilak Varma Explains Call to Leave Karun Nair Out of Playing XI

South Zone captain Tilak Varma explained the decision to leave out Karun Nair for the Duleep Trophy semi-final against North Zone, saying it was a tactical call to play Kodimela Himateja over the experienced campaigner.

Nair, who has played 10 Tests and is the most experienced player in the current South Zone squad, was left out of the playing XI for the knockout clash, which was played at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence Ground 2. His omission led to several eyebrows being raised, although it did not have a big impact as South Zone pipped North Zone to march into the final.

Tilak, who scored a hundred and a fifty in the game, addressed Karun’s exclusion and justified his decision to play the young Himateja.

“Karun is just unlucky. He has scored a lot of runs in domestic seasons,” Tilak said while addressing the media at the CoE. “I have chosen Himateja in place of Karun as they have good left-arm spinners. So we wanted a leftie in the middle order. He has also scored a decent amount of runs in domestic cricket. I was just backing him. As a youngster, he also has a good career. At the same time, it is very unfortunate for Karun.”

Himateja failed to live up to the expectations of his captain, as the left-handed batter failed to score a single run in the game. Nair scored 699 runs in the last Ranji Trophy season, while Himateja made 485 runs.

South Zone will play East Zone in the Duleep Trophy final, which begins on September 6 in Chennai.

Follow RevSportz for latest sports news

The post Duleep Trophy: Tilak Varma Explains Call to Leave Karun Nair Out of Playing XI appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.