Karun Nair replaces injured KL Rahul at Lucknow Super Giants

Out-of-favour India batter Karun Nair was on Friday picked by Lucknow Super Giants as a replacement for their injured skipper KL Rahul for the remainder of the IPL.

Karun will join the franchise for Rs 50 lakh.

Rahul was on Friday ruled out of the IPL as well as the World Test Championship final in which India will take on Australia at The Oval in London from June 7. In a statement, the batter said will undergo a thigh surgery on the advice of the medical team.

"Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Friday named Karun Nair as a replacement for the injured KL Rahul for the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023," the IPL said in a statement.

Rahul, the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants franchise, sustained the injury during a game against Royal Challengers Bangalore earlier this week.

"Rahul sustained a thigh injury while fielding during Match 43 of IPL 2023 against Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow," the statement added.

Karun, who has a triple hundred in Test cricket, has so far played 76 IPL games and has 1,496 runs against his name.