Record 1237 runs in 7 matches at 176 average: Nitish Kumar Reddy’s claim to fame that sent message to those who matter

20 minutes before the toss at the Optus Stadium in Perth, the Indian team was in a huddle. It is as common a sight in cricket as traffic in Mumbai on a Monday morning. But in that huddle, there were two young cricketers realising their dreams.

Nitish Kumar Reddy, a 21-year-old from Andhra Pradesh and Harshit Rana, a sprawling fast bowler from Delhi, were getting their Test caps from two of India’s finest – Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin.

It was a bold call from India, with coach Gautam Gambhir and his staff taking a big gamble by throwing the pair in at the deep end as asking them to swim. While the pair have shone on the big stage in white ball cricket, it is a vote of confidence to involve them off the bat in what is considered to be India’s main focus in terms of red ball cricket.

For Nitish Reddy, a meteoric rise on the big stage has meant that his highly-coveted all-round skills will get a chance to come to the fore in Australia. Chosen to bat in the lower-middle order and to offer a fourth-choice seam option to take advantage of the Perth pitch, Reddy could be an x-factor for the team as the series wears on.

The kind of seam-bowling all-rounder India have been crying out for in their Test team for many years, Nitish also brings the batting credentials that makes him the ideal number seven or eight for any team.

Reddy’s breakthrough in red-ball cricket began with the under-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy in 2017/18, where he represented Andhra Pradesh with great distinction as he scored a truck-load of runs to come out of the group of young cricketers looking like a star of the future.

Nitish heaped on 1237 runs in just 8 innings, averaging a nearly-unbelivable 176 across the tournament. That remains the watermark for the single-edition run-scoring charts, showing his props with bat in hand. A triple century against Tamil Nadu, followed up by a century against Karnataka and a massive 441 against Nagaland.

Into national consideration with a phenomenal IPL

Reddy’s stock truly shot through the roof after a fantastic IPL 2024 season in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s powerful team, where he showed great quality in the middle order against premier opposition. With 303 runs at a solid strike rate and the bonus of some quality pace bowling, Nitish went on to make the most of his international debut in the T20 series against Bangladesh, impressing coach Gautam Gambhir with his approach to the game.

Following this, his quality bowling in the tour games between India A and Australia A was the standout factor of his inclusion in those matches. With threatening and consistent lengths as well as quick adaptation to Australian conditions, Reddy caught the eye of bowling coach Morne Morkel, as well as stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah.

His flexibility and ability across the board made Nitish somewhat of a surprise inclusion, but an entirely logical one given how he can produce on multiple fronts for the team. It remains to be seen how he adapts to the high-pressure situation, but Nitish will want to prove that the fieriest crucibles create the finest players.