Cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar sees a “rare batting talent” in young Nitish Kumar Reddy. But he dropped a subtle hint about the dilemma regarding his place in the playing XI by suggesting the need for the Indian team to make its bowling attack sharper. The 21-year-old could arguably be the find of the series for India just after the first two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series in Australia. When Indian batting stalwarts stood clueless in Perth and Adelaide, Nitish stole the limelight with a barrage of aggressive strokes, establishing himself as a force to be reckoned with.
In the first innings of the series opener, coming in at number eight, Nitish was quick to realise that the surface offered nothing to Nathan Lyon and reeled off three fours in eight balls.
Even though Nitish has just 942 runs to his name in first-class cricket, averaging a mere 23.55 in 25 matches, he has shown signs of being much more than what his statistics suggest.
Nitish’s precision and understanding of the game have allowed him to wallop the Australian bowling unit without breaking a sweat. While featuring at number seven, Nitish produced a game-changing 41 in the opening Test and went on to slam 42 each in the first and second innings of the Adelaide Test.
“Exceptional batting talent there, and you can see it. Maybe the kind of batting talent that gets better with higher-quality bowling. He hasn’t got many runs in first-class cricket, but you can see the rare batting talent there,” Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo.
However, he raised his concern about the need for the Indian team to find the right balance after the Adelaide Test. Known for their prowess to take wickets according to their will, the Indian seamers were blunt while targeting the Australian batters.
Apart from Jasprit Bumrah appearing to be in his league with his swagger, the rest of the pace unit appeared to deliver a toothless display on the majority of the occasions.
If Indian management decides to throw another seamer into the mix, Nitish could be the sacrificial lamb in the process. With the possibilty of playing him as an all-out batter, Manjrekar feels it is too risky and too early.
“But India also has to think about the balance of the team. India also have to look to make their bowling sharper along with solving the batting issues. Nitish has shown some spark at the moment. It is a bit risky but too early,” he added.
The ongoing BGT currently stands level at 1-1 as the action now heads to Brisbane for the third Test, beginning on Saturday.
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