'The first time I have batted so long' - Karun

He hugged his partner KL Rahul after scoring only his second fifty of the season on the second day of Karnataka's Ranji Trophy final against Tamil Nadu in Mumbai. Later that day, he took his helmet off and raised his arms towards the dressing room after completing his first hundred of the season.

Early on Tuesday, the third day of the match, Karun Nair walked down the pitch to Malolan Rangarajan and completed a single to bring up his maiden 150. It was followed by a customary handshake with Rahul. And as he continued to rack up records, the celebrations became increasingly muted.

After reverse-sweeping Rangarajan for his 44th boundary to score only the second triple century by a Karnataka batsman and the second ever in a Ranji final, Karun was congratulated by the bowler and he then took off his helmet and raised his arms towards the dressing room. It is an innings that could his take his career to the next level, but he needed some prodding when it came to the celebrations.

"It was a good feeling. [R] Samarth had told me to do some other celebration when I reach 300, but I didn't do anything different. I don't feel the necessity to celebrate much, it just doesn't happen at that time," Karun said.

Except for the first 35 minutes of Karnataka's innings on the first evening, Karun has been on the field throughout the match. He has occupied the crease for 13 hours and 35 minutes, almost three times the duration of Tamil Nadu's innings. He has weathered three new balls thus far, and has continued to keep his instincts in check during the rigorous knock.

"I don't think before yesterday I had batted for a day also. This was the first time I've batted so long so I was pretty happy. I think I started feeling tired at tea and after tea I was just drinking a lot of water and stretching a bit," he said.

Karun entered the match on the back of a patchy season, with 381 runs from 15 innings. He has virtually doubled the tally with his unbeaten 310. He admitted the biggest challenge for him was coping with the conditions, not the opposition bowlers.

"The first half hour was the most challenging. We were looking at playing out the first half hour and then we knew that it will be all done. I think it was more about being patient. The field was spread out so I had to be patient and look for singles," he said.

If he continues to adapt to different formats, he will continue to be on the radar of the national selectors, who watched his stupendous knock from the President's Box at the Wankhede Stadium.