Nitish Kumar Reddy has been taking massive strides in the world of cricket. From winning the Emerging Player of the Tournament in IPL 2024 to making his debut for India in the T20Is against Bangladesh, Nitish is being trusted as someone who can become India’s premier fast-bowling all-rounder in the future.
For the 21-year-old, the much-awaited India’s tour of Australia will be the first real challenge in his short international career. Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Nitish, in a freewheeling interview, talked about a range of things – from getting the India cap, dealing with pressure, Gautam Gambhir, tips from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya’s influence, love for Virat Kohli and Cristiano Ronaldo, gaining respect for his family, SunRisers Hyderabad, and of course the much-awaited Test series Down Under.
Excerpts…
Q: How was it to get your India debut against Bangladesh in the T20I format?
A: It always feels very good to represent India and the Indian team. It’s a dream for every player to play for India and now when you are representing India, you want to make India proud by performing well. It feels very good for me.
Q: You are just 21. How are you handling the sudden pressure of being with the Indian team and all the eyeballs?
A: To be honest, it was a good feeling. Nerves are there, pressure is there, everything will be there. You will have to handle the nerve and pressure. You know you need to go and perform there. It feels very good when you go out there in front of Indian fans and perform. It feels like you are making your country and your state proud as well. Thankful to the BCCI for the opportunities.
Q: How have Gautam Gambhir and the entire coaching staff been with you?
A: To be honest, they are very good and welcoming. Going at a senior team and as a youngster, it can sometimes feel like that you don’t know the seniors; how they react, how they behave and everything. It can be a totally different culture from what we experience in state cricket. Gautam sir was very welcoming. He gives me and other players the freedom, the licence to play naturally. He suggested to me that I can play aggressively. And that’s what I did, it really helped me a lot. A lot of other points as well which he mentioned to me and I’m working on that. They have been really helpful for me.
Q: How was that 74-run knock against Bangladesh? You picked up two wickets as well. How did the dressing-room react?
A: It was very good. When you perform, everything will be good. The first match I scored 16. But at the time of acceleration, the match got over. I felt like I should have accelerated a little bit early. But it’s fine. I was waiting for the opportunity and I got the opportunity. I would say Gautam sir came during the drinks break, at the right time. He straightaway mentioned that I played a reverse sweep and said in those kinds of wickets, you don’t trust reverse sweep as sometimes the ball keeps low and is not suitable for reverse sweep. He told me, ‘you have your power. You go through your power. Just believe in your power-hitting’. I just trusted him and my power-hitting. After the drinks break, they brought in the spinners and I was just smashing them. That point really helped me at the time.
Q: How did you improve your bowling? You were hitting late 130 kph against Bangladesh, which was really impressive. Any important tips that you have received from coaches, seniors or in the IPL which have helped you?
A: To be honest, I am working hard to improve my bowling. I won’t say I was trying to get a little more pace. But in the past, I have tried to get a little more pace. I got a good point from Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. So, he was mentioning some player who bowls at 145, 150. Pace is good but that’s not good when you don’t bowl in the right areas. If you are bowling 150 kph and you are not bowling in the right areas, you will be smashed. And he was giving an example. He said that 130 to 140 is very good pace. You just need to be consistent wherever you wanted to bowl with precision. If you master that, it doesn’t matter if you bowl 140, 145 or something. If you master that, 135 is also very good. I was really going through this pace thing at that time. I wanted to increase my pace and everything. And I was thinking in that way.
One more point I received from Gautam sir – when I was bowling in my first session for India, I was bowling some slowers. He came to me and said, ‘Nitish, I know you bowl good slower ones. But you need to focus on hitting the top of off stump. You need to have a proper bowler mindset’. I used to think, I am a batsman who can bowl. It was important to believe I am a bowling all-rounder. Whenever you have the ball in your hand, you need to think like a bowler. Whenever you have a bat in your hand, you need to think like a batter.
For the Latest Sports News: Click Here
So, he was mentioning, ‘when the skipper gives you the ball, you need to be ready to bowl a yorker. You need to be ready to bowl on top of off stump. You need to be ready to bowl bouncers. So, you need to plan in that way at the nets as well. You need to be aggressive. You need to bowl bouncers at the nets. You need to bowl yorkers. You need to hit the top of off stump. What a bowler does, you have to do that. You don’t have to think like, I am a batting all-rounder. You don’t need to think in that way. You need to think as a bowler’.
That really helped me. That’s a basic point. It was a very good point at that time.
Q: Do you feel you are ready to face Australia that too in Australia?
A: I am ready to give my 100, 110% for the Indian team. The BCCI has chosen me and I have to respond accordingly. As an all-rounder, I have both the skillsets and I want to give my 110%, whichever way I can help them. Even I’m a good fielder, I can help in fielding as well. If I’m not playing, I can be the 12th man and carry drinks with all my heart. I can help by taking good catches. If I’m playing, I will be trying to give my maximum effort. It’s a crucial Test series for India. It will be very, very crucial series for me as well.
Q: You played for India A with the red Kookaburra for the first time. Did you notice any change, as in India we play with the SG red ball.
A: Obviously, the SG and Kookaburra, there is a lot of difference. Because, with SG, it gets rough easily on one side and it is easy to maintain that shine and rough. In Kookaburra, it doesn’t… I guess, it’s because of the pitches or it’s because of the outfield. I don’t know. It doesn’t get old that quickly. And, it doesn’t get rough on one side. It gets rough on both sides. We can’t find much swing here apart from initial stages. But if you are bowling first-change, second-change, you can’t find that much swing here. You can trust that off-the-pitch movement though like, scrambled seam, hitting that scrambled seam. You can trust the bounce as well. You can play with that. That’s what I felt.
Q: From being an opening bowler and batter in age-group cricket to shifting to the middle-order role… What changes have you made in your game?
A: Yeah, I have made a couple of changes. One thing you have said that I was an opener batsman and opening bowler. I modified that. When you are bowling 20 overs and straight away coming back again to bat after taking 10 minutes break to play the new ball. That was really hard for me. I might have to play the second new ball as a middle-order batter as well but that is completely different. Skill-wise, it wasn’t an issue but body-wise, it was. I have already grinded in that No. 5, No. 6 down as well. And in the opening slot as well. So, whenever the team says that they want me to do the opening, I will be ready. And if they want me to do it at No. 7, No. 8 or anything like that, I am ready for that as well.
Q: How do you manage both batting and bowling? It can really take a toll on your body…
A: There was a time when I wanted to leave fast bowling and wanted to do off-spin, when I was something like 17. I was completely trying to avoid bowling because I was getting tired a lot and eventually my batting stats were going down. I was not getting scores and was worried about my batting. I worked a lot on my batting. And then I spoke with my coach. He said, ‘Nitish, now you are feeling in this way, but in senior age groups or when you play at senior level, when your batting fails you, your bowling will be rescuing you. Fast-bowling all-rounder is very rare and you got that ability. Don’t leave that’. So, yeah, and at the time, I felt like, okay, let’s keep on working on what I can do. I tried to score in that No. 5, No. 6 down. Eventually that all-rounder thing came into me.
Q: Hardik Pandya has been India’s premier pace bowling all-rounder for a while now. Any conversations you have with him?
A: I met him in the IPL, when we played against him. A big question that I asked him is how do we maintain our body. I know, as all-rounders, we have to do two jobs. That’s not really easy. The appreciation is very much there but a plenty of hard work is also there. And you need to be ready to go through it. You have to be fit. You have to be flexible for everything. Like whatever role the team gives you, you have to be flexible for that. For that, I asked him, ‘what kind of diet do you follow and what is your routine and how specific are you about your supplements or like food intake, everything’. So, he mentioned me a couple of points that are really helpful for me.
Q: You are super fit and extremely athletic as well. Does it come naturally?
A: From childhood, I used to run a lot. To be honest, my technique was very bad at the time. But yeah, in school competitions and all, I used to come first and second. Mostly, I wanted to be, like, there is a friend of mine who used to run well as well. So, I just wanted to beat him. I always used to win. So, it’s just, I don’t want anyone to win over me in the running competitions in my school. So, when I came to cricket, there were a lot of seniors and I tried competing with them. And the seniors are a little quick. I was studying in eighth grade maybe. When I went to my academy, they taught me the running technique and all. It’s not like a born thing for me. When the technique got added to my system, I became faster, slowly and steadily.
And about fitness, I was not so specific when I was a kid. But my father was so specific about fitness because he was a sports person and played at club level. Eventually, I also got to know that fitness is the only thing that can change everything. From there, I worked hard on my fitness as well.
Q: So, discipline is there in you since childhood?
Yeah, you know, like my idols are Virat Kohli and Cristiano Ronaldo. I admire them a lot. Cristiano is my all-time favourite. Like, he is my motivator in a way. Whenever I see him or whenever I see his reels or videos, whenever I listen to his speeches, everything kind of boosts me instantly.
Q: Was your father a hard taskmaster as a coach?
A: To be honest, I am so happy that I got a father like him. Because in childhood, I used to think, he is a harsh kind of father who doesn’t like me to go with my friends or allow me to play with them, gully cricket. I liked playing gully cricket a lot. Playing with friends was always a happy thing. But he didn’t allow me because he thought my technique will get hampered. He was so into me and he didn’t allow me for functions or any events. He forced me for a strict diet at that point. He used to give me dry fruits. I didn’t like having that. But at that age, we lack maturity. I should thank my father for being that much caring about me because if he was not that hard on me, I wouldn’t be here. That’s a really good thing that happened to me, my father. I will keep thanking my father because of what he has done.
Q: Getting retained by SunRisers Hyderabad, the big bucks that it brings, and steadily becoming the face of the franchise. How does it feel at such a young age?
A: I would say it feels great. I am from a middle-class family. I know where I came from and what my background is. So, whatever money comes, it’s fine. But it shouldn’t be like money is the only thing. I take it in that way. I wanted to invest on myself and in the future. I am not the guy who enjoys money and spends a lot. I am the guy who invests on myself and who invests in the future. So, it doesn’t bother me that much, the money thing.
It feels very good to play for Sunrisers Hyderabad. I am a Telugu guy who comes from there. Representing that team is very good. They treat me as their own kind of son, brother or someone like that. It feels very good when the fanbase is feeling in that way.
I always wanted to be respected. I am getting that respect because of cricket. Even for my father, the whole journey has been full of ups and downs. My father used had a government job. When he resigned because of me and my cricket, I saw a lot of family members or relatives, they turned their backs on us. My father had tough days. Even we had tough days. I wanted everyone to respect my father, my family. That’s when I took this game seriously. Eventually, now everyone is respecting my father, my family, my sister and me. That’s what I always wanted. Money comes and goes. But that respect doesn’t come to everyone. I feel so great representing SRH. And I am looking forward to next season and performing well on behalf of Telugu people. There are a lot of talented players from that region as well. I want to promote them. That’s one of my goals as well.
Tilak Verma and I used to speak that we should perform well. Now we need to perform and we need to bring some other Telugu players to the IPL. But because of some players who didn’t click in the IPL, many franchises could have their reservations. So, once we perform, we open the path for others from Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh as well. The IPL is the one platform which changes everything. Even in my case as well, the IPL changed everything in one year. So, you never know. But you just need to be humble to everyone and you need to focus on your game. That’s all you need. Stay humble. Stay rooted. Just focus on what you do.
Q: Who is your cricketing idol?
My idol, like, cricketing idol is Virat bhai (Virat Kohli). Since childhood, I have watched him and I played my cricket based on his style. When I started playing cricket, I watched him and I admired his gameplay and his attitude. The way he changed Indian cricket. I like everything about him; I like him a lot. My favourite club is where Ronaldo plays. I follow Cristiano.
Q: What’s your individual goal as a cricketer?
A: My ultimate dream is to become one of the greatest, to become one of the greatest all-rounders. That’s my ultimate goal. Greatest all-rounders. Like Ben Stokes, Hardik Pandya, Kapil Dev – in that kind of league.
Also Read: What Ricky Ponting says about Virat Kohli is irrelevant, no point highlighting it