"A Top Cricketer Told Me to Retire… But I Couldn’t Give Up That Easily": Karun Nair on Ignoring Retirement Advice

Karun Nair will play for India again after seven years. He last appeared in a Test back in 2017 before being dropped. Now, as he gets ready for the series against England, Nair has shared a surprising revelation about the ups and downs he faced during his time away.

In a chat with the Daily Mail, after the 2022 season, a well-known player even suggested he retire from red-ball cricket and just play T20 leagues to secure his future. At that time, he’d been left out of the Karnataka side and spent almost 14 months without any competitive cricket. Nair says it would’ve been easy to walk away, but he knew he’d regret quitting so soon.

“I still remember a prominent Indian cricketer calling me and saying you need to retire because the money in these leagues would make me secure. It would have been easy to do, but I knew that regardless of the money, I would be kicking myself for giving up that easily,” Karun said.

‘Mentally, I Was Gone’: Karun Nair Opens Up on Career Low and His Family’s Support

 

Karun Nair made his way back into competitive cricket through the County Championship and later shifted from Karnataka to Vidarbha. That move, along with two strong domestic seasons, helped him rebuild his career. His solid performances in the 2024/25 Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy, and IPL 2025 opened the door for a well-deserved return to India’s Test squad.

“I was never going to give up on playing for India again. That was just over two years ago, and look where we are now. It’s crazy, but deep down, I always believed I was good enough,” Nair said.

 “My wife was like what are you doing but I told her this is how I feel. That was probably the toughest moment of my life. This time, it felt like my world was over. I had no idea what to do next. I was asking myself what am I supposed to do? I have a family and my son was recently born but I was lost. Mentally, I was gone,’ he added.

So far, Nair has played six Tests and scored 374 runs, including a memorable triple century. While batting at No. 5, he has scored 321 runs, showing his strength in the middle order. Recently, he also hit a double hundred in India A’s unofficial Test against England Lions, making a strong case for a spot in India’s playing XI for the upcoming Test series.

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