Nitish Kumar Reddy Scores Maiden India 100: Indian Cricket Team all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy scored his first century in international cricket against Australia in the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. With that, he saved India from a follow-on with his partnership alongside Washington Sundar.
Today was Day Three of the fourth match out of five in the Australia vs India Tests, played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. At the start of the day, India looked in trouble. At 164/5, they were trailing Australia by 310 runs. Late in Day Two, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, and night watchman Akash Deep lost their wickets.
Nitish Kumar Reddy Scores Maiden India 100
Today’s play started with Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja on strike. Immediately a few wicket-taking opportunities were created. While Pant hit shots through slips on a couple of occasions, Jadeja attempted a misguided run and was nearly run out. Soon, Rishabh attempted a run where there was none too and gave the Indian fans a scare.
Finally, when looking to play in the unconventional way he does, Rishabh Pant was finally dismissed when an edge off his bat was caught at third man. Soon after, with India still 253 runs behind, Ravindra Jadeja was trapped in front of the stumps and was dismissed.
With Nitish Kumar Reddy on strike alongside a fresh Washington Sundar, the two youngsters looked to save India’s inning. Not looking to hold back, Reddy started hitting back at the bowlers, scoring a few boundaries and even a six. At the end of the first session of the day, Nitish was batting at 40 while Washy was batting at five in 27 deliveries.
Soon after lunch, Nitish Kumar Reddy scored his first 50 in Test cricket, bringing out the iconic ‘Pushpa’ celebration. Soon, Washington joined the party as the two crossed the 272-run mark, the line for the follow-on.
While Reddy raced towards the next milestone, Sundar was right behind him, taking singles and ticking the scoreboard on. And with probably the best cover drive of the match by Nitish, the partnership reached 100 runs, soon after which rain stopped play for about 40 minutes.
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It took him 146 deliveries, but Washington Sundar reached his 50, his fourth in Test cricket. Nitish Reddy then crossed the 90-run mark, entering the nervous 90s in the Indian jersey for the first time. But then, another twist in the tale. With Reddy on 97, Sundar edged the ball and was caught in the slips as India fell to 348/8.
With two tailenders to come, there was no guarantee that Nitish Kumar Reddy would even get the chance to reach his maiden Test 100. On the final ball of Scott Boland’s over, looking to change the strike, Reddy hit it over mid-off but ran two runs alongside Jasprit Bumrah.
In the next over, bowled by Pat Cummins, Bumrah played two balls but was dismissed on the third. With three balls to go in the over and No. 11 batter Mohammed Siraj on strike, it looked increasingly likely that the 21-year-old all-rounder would be stuck on 99. But Siraj brilliantly defended three balls. Then, in the next over, Reddy scored the runs that took him past 100, his first century in international cricket.
Soon after this happened, the day’s play was stopped and then suspended due to bad light. At the end of the day’s play, India was at 358/9, still trailing by 116 runs. Nitish Kumar Reddy is on strike alongside Mohammed Siraj on 105 and two runs, respectively.
This inning by Reddy has played a crucial role in this Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The winner of this India vs Australia match will go to the fifth and final Test of this series in Sydney with a chance to win this series.
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