Karun Nair returned to India's playing XI. Photo: PTI
Ignored and dropped by Virat Kohli, Karun Nair made his return to India's playing XI for the first Test match against England in Leeds. The right-handed batsman was part of Virat-led Team India for the England tour in 2018 but stayed on the bench for all five games. In 2017, Karun was dropped from the playing XI for the one-off Test match against Bangladesh despite scoring a triple-century in the fifth Test against England in Chennai.
Karun did make his comeback in the playing XI but didn't get regular chances. In 2018, he was dropped from the squad after being on the bench for the England tour.
Karun's dream run for Vidarbha in the 2024/25 domestic season saw him force his way back into Team India. He scored 863 runs in the Ranji Trophy and 779 runs in 8 innings in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. While Karun was ignored for the 2025 Champions Trophy, he returned to the Test team.
Sai Sudharsan was handed his maiden Test cap. The left-handed batsman will bat at number 3. Captain Shubman Gill, who batted at number 3 from 2023 till the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, will fill the void created by Virat's retirement at number 4. He is making his Test captaincy debut.
Former India vice-captain, KL Rahul, will open the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal. Vice-captain Rishabh Pant will bat at number 5 and will be followed by Karun. Shardul Thakur has made his comeback in the playing XI and is the sole pace-bowling all-rounder.
England opt to bowl first
Ben Stokes won the toss and England opted to bowl first in the series opener. They had announced their playing XI ahead of the Test match. Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj are three pacers in India's playing XI.
Here are playing XIs of both teams
India: Shubman Gill (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant (Vice-Captain), Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
England: Ben Stokes (Captain), Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir
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