The 21-year-old Indian all-rounder Nitish Reddy had an excellent time during the recent five-match Test series of the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 down under. The right-handed batter finished as the fourth leading run-getter of the series with the help of 298 runs in nine innings at an average of 30.67 and a strike rate of 64.22 thanks to his incredible 114-run knock at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
Nitish Reddy’s rise began during the home T20I series against Bangladesh, where he nailed 90 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 180. However, he couldn’t bat and bowl in the series opener of the five T20I at home against England at the Eden Gardens before the reports of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed that he had been ruled out of the last four encounters with a side strain.
The former Indian opener, Aakash Chopra, reckoned that the Andhra Pradesh-born was perhaps not prepared to carry the workload of international cricket and got injured. The youngster impressed and caught the eyes of the selectors with a fabulous 2024 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), where he nailed 303 runs at a strike rate of 142.92 in 11 innings.
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India struggled on many occasions to get the runs flowing in the middle before Nitish Reddy displayed his exceptional ability to claim the momentum and nail a few big shots around the park.
“Nitish Reddy is injured. He has been ruled out of the entire series. You must be thinking, ‘What would’ve happened?‘ I am wondering how this would have happened. When you start playing international cricket, the workload is different.” The former Indian opening batter, Aakash Chopra, expressed this in a video shared on his YouTube channel.
“Believe it or not, Nitish Reddy is a young kid”- Aakash Chopra
The all-rounder has featured in just 28 first-class games to manage over 1000 runs at an average of nearly 24, thanks to two centuries and as many half-centuries at the best score of 159. With the ball, he has picked up 61 wickets in 51 innings at an average of 27.88 and a strike rate of around 50, shouldering on the best bowling figure of 5/53 in an innings.
“Workload and pressure go hand in hand. He played 5 Tests in Australia. He performed there. He was on the ground consistently. He batted and even bowled a little. It takes a toll. Believe it or not, he is a young kid. The body sometimes doesn’t last that long.” The Uttar Pradesh-born addressed.
In his position, the selectors have called back Shivam Dube for the last three T20Is in Rajkot, Pune, and Mumbai, alongside Ramandeep Singh. Both were part of the recent sixth round of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 but couldn’t make a huge contribution with the bat or ball against Jammu and Kashmir and Karnataka, respectively.
Chopra cited injury concerns that might have grown for Nitish Reddy after he played all five Tests in Australia in just seven weeks.
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“Suddenly, you realize there is an injury. I think something has happened. Maybe the body wasn’t ready for this workload and pressure, and he broke down. Shivam Dube has been called into the squad in place of Nitish.” The renowned commentator concluded.
Along with Reddy, Rinku Singh was also ruled out of the Chennai and Rajkot T20Is and is expected to make a return to the international side during the fourth Pune game of the series.