Watch: Karun Nair declared fit, but Bumrah, Pant and other stars miss India’s final practice at Headingley

In a major boost for the India National Cricket Team ahead of the first Test against England, Karun Nair joined the practice session at Headingley, putting all injury speculations to rest. Actually, Karun Nair had a minor scare during India’s net session ahead of the first Test against England.

While batting on Wednesday, June 18, the right-handed batter was hit on the abdomen by a sharp delivery from Prasidh Krishna. Nair looked in pain for a moment, but Prasidh quickly checked on him. However, Nair continued with the session but sparked buzz about his availability.

Karun Nair back in action but key players missing from India’s nets in Leeds

However, on Thursday, June 19, Nair was seen entering the Headingley Stadium—the venue where the five-match Test series between England and India will be held from June 20—along with the touring side in the viral video. It confirms the batter is ready for the action in Leeds, as per RevSportz.

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Karun Nair comes to the practice Debunking all injury scare rumours.@RohanDC98 @ThumsUpOfficial #KarunNair #ENGvsIND #IndiaTourofEngland pic.twitter.com/ktFkYrqYXb

— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) June 19, 2025

Meanwhile, the Indian squad hit the Headingley Stadium for their final preparations, with several key names spotted in the nets on Thursday. The new captain, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Nair were all present for the batting practice.

Read Also: Massive pressure on Shubman Gill as ex-India head coach sends brutal warning ahead of Test captaincy debut

However, Arshdeep Singh, who is in line to make his Test debut on the England tour, was the only seamer to bowl at the nets, while both spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav trained a day before the much-awaited Test series opener against the Ben Stokes-led England cricket team.

Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Rishabh Pant skip India's final practice session

But India’s premier pacers Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Rishabh Pant, and Dhruv Jurel were absent from the practice session, raising questions about India’s final XI strategy for the opening Test starting June 20, as per TOI.

It hints that Arshdeep Singh will have to wait for his Test debut while the team management may have decided to rest Bumrah, Siraj, Krishna, Thakur, Nitish Kumar, Pant, and Jurel ahead of the Headingley Test against England.

In the viral photo, Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir was also seen signing autographs for the fans as he was entering the facility for the team’s final practice session.

Read Also: Emotional moment as Sachin Tendulkar and James Anderson unveil Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy

The Indian team arrives for practice. Arshdeep Singh is the only seamer here. Both Jadeja and Kuldeep here. Shubman, KL, Jaiswal, Karun, Easwaran here.
No Bumrah, Siraj, Prasidh, NKR, Shardul, Pant, Jurel pic.twitter.com/YAqd0Ycvch

— Sahil Malhotra (@Sahil_Malhotra1) June 19, 2025

Sanjay Manjrekar calls the Shubman Gill-Gautam Gambhir pair as India's new winning formula in Tests

Meanwhile, Sanjay Manjrekar feels Gautam Gambhir will enjoy working with young captain Shubman Gill as India begins its new World Test Championship cycle with the England tour. He pointed out how India saw success in T20Is under Suryakumar Yadav after Rohit Sharma’s retirement, so he believes that Gambhir can get similar results in Tests with Gill leading the side.

Sanjay Manjrekar was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo, “Gautam Gambhir, as coach, will enjoy a young captain with him. You can see him as a coach when he's playing with Suryakumar Yadav as the Indian captain versus, you know, Rohit Sharma. He'll enjoy that job. So, there's going to be a better kind of relationship between the captain and the coach.”

Manjrekar also noted that Gill’s captaincy situation is similar to when Mohammad Azharuddin was made India captain in the 90s. The cricket pundit believes that Gill and his young team should play freely, with nothing to lose and everything to gain on the England tour.