IND-A vs ENG-L: Karun Nair slams century on comeback; Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran flop in unofficial Test against England Lions

After an 8-year wait, Karun Nair has made his much-anticipated return to Team India and he has already passed his first test with flying colors. Selected for both India A and the senior team during the England tour Nair made headlines by scoring a solid century in his very first match against the England Lions. He played exceptionally well, winning over the fans with his performance. Nair proved that he still has plenty of cricket left in him. Coming in at number three after Team India lost two quick wickets, he steadied the innings before unleashing his shots. He reached his century off 155 balls, which included 14 boundaries.

The first unofficial Test between India A and the England Lions kicked off in Canterbury, England, during IPL 2025. England Lions won the toss and opted to bowl first. Unfortunately, India A didn’t have the best start, losing their first two wickets early on. The opening pair of Abhimanyu Easwaran and Yashasvi Jaiswal returned to the pavilion with the score at just 51 runs, after which Karun Nair and Sarfaraz Khan took charge of the innings.

Yashasvi Jaiswal managed to score 24 runs in the first unofficial Test against the England Lions at St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury. The young opener seemed to struggle a bit early on with the swinging ball but soon found his groove. He took his time to settle in and didn’t play his usual aggressive style. During his time at the crease, Jaiswal struck three boundaries and a six before falling to Edward Jack. The 19-year-old attempted to hit a full delivery for a boundary but mis-timed it, resulting in a nick to keeper James Rew. That marked the end of Jaiswal’s innings in the 17th over of the match.

Abhimanyu Easwaran had a challenging day at the crease as well. This seasoned player had a golden chance to showcase his skills and earn a place in the senior squad, but he could only manage to score eight runs before heading back to the pavilion. With KL Rahul set to return for the second unofficial Test, it will be interesting to see if Easwaran gets another chance. He still has the opportunity to make an impact in the second innings and prove he deserves his spot.

It's worth mentioning that several members of the Indian Test team are included in the playing XI against England. Alongside Jaiswal and Easwaran, the lineup features Karun Nair, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Shardul Thakur.

Karun is expected to bat at number three, having already made a strong case for himself by scoring a century in the first match against the England Lions. As of this writing, India has put up 243 runs, losing 3 wickets in 60 overs. Karun is currently unbeaten on 102, while Dhruv Jurel is not out at 5 runs.

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