{"id":282282,"date":"2025-04-15T06:58:18","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T06:58:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/15\/ipl-2025-the-new-karun-nair-looks-like-his-good-old-self-cricket-news-the-times-of-india\/"},"modified":"2025-04-15T06:58:18","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T06:58:18","slug":"ipl-2025-the-new-karun-nair-looks-like-his-good-old-self-cricket-news-the-times-of-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/15\/ipl-2025-the-new-karun-nair-looks-like-his-good-old-self-cricket-news-the-times-of-india\/","title":{"rendered":"IPL 2025: The ‘new’ Karun Nair looks like his good old self | Cricket News – The Times of India"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"IPL<\/div>


\n<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Karun Nair (BCCI\/IPL Photo)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NEW DELHI: \u201cThere\u2019s no use talking much about my innings. I played well, but I couldn\u2019t finish the match,\u201d Karun Nair probably knew that the postmatch media briefing on Sunday night would be a lot about his resurgence.
Three years can be a long time in cricket. A lot has changed since Nair last batted in an IPL match before the majestic 40-ball 89 for Delhi Capitals on Sunday night. For instance, the rate of scoring has gone through the roof in the IPL. Yet, Nair knew he could not force himself to bat any differently. That has been at the core of his resurgence at the domestic level as well.
\u201cI\u2019ve played in the IPL before, so it doesn\u2019t really matter much how many years it\u2019s been since I last played. I knew I wasn\u2019t going to face anything completely new,\u201d Nair said after taking down the Mumbai Indians<\/a> attack. The game plan was simple. Focus on timing the ball and finding gaps. <\/p>\n

\u201cI told myself to take my time, play my normal shots, and improvise only when needed. Luckily, it worked. I\u2019m happy that I batted well,\u201d was his humble assessment of his knock. One wonders how much time he must have taken to get his eye in, in an innings that lasted just 40 balls. He got off to a flyer and none of those shots seemed manufactured or resembled anything in modern-day power-hitting. He had knocked the wind out of the likes of Trent Boult<\/a> and Jasprit Bumrah<\/a> with textbook front foot drives and pick-ups off his pads. And he had to get going immediately, chasing 206 against a formidable attack. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to break that flow and just wanted to play the right shots to the right balls. Bumrah is one of the best bowlers in the world right now, so I had to stay alert. But I trusted myself and picked the areas where I wanted to play my shots. Then I executed them in those areas,\u201d he said.
The good form aside, Nair would himself realise that these opportunities don\u2019t come easy at this stage of his career. He got a look-in only because Faf du Plessis wasn\u2019t available. Interestingly, it was the Impact Player regulation that opened the door for him \u2014 a rule that came in when he was in exile. \u201cWe knew that the batsmen sitting out had to stay ready because an opportunity could come anytime,\u201d Nair said before going on to spell out the rhetoric around the Impact Player rule: \u201cThe Impact Player rule has had a big influence. It has given batters more freedom to go out and play their shots freely. Because of that, more runs are being scored now. It has helped teams a lot.\u201d The Impact Player rule may have freed up a lot of batters, but the 33-year-old Nair must have shook off other shackles than just the pressure of scoring quick.<\/p>\n


Get the latest IPL 2025<\/a> updates on Times of India<\/a>, including match schedules<\/a>, team squads<\/a>, points table<\/a> and IPL live score<\/a> for CSK<\/a>, MI<\/a>, RCB<\/a>, KKR<\/a>, SRH<\/a>, LSG<\/a>, DC<\/a>, GT<\/a>, PBKS<\/a>, and RR<\/a>. Don’t miss the list of players in the race for IPL Orange Cap<\/a> and IPL Purple cap<\/a>. <\/i><\/div>\n<\/div>\n