Sachin Tendulkar on Nitish Kumar Reddy Century vs AUS: Veteran cricketer Sachin Tendulkar praised India’s young all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy after his maiden Test century on the third day of the Boxing Day Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Saturday. Thanks to Reddy’s unbeaten inning of 105 runs, India scored 358 for 9 wickets and is 116 runs behind Australia. Impressed by the youngster’s patience, Tendulkar took to social media to praise his innings, which kept India in the contest in the fourth Test.
Tendulkar wrote on X, “Nitish’s memorable innings. He has impressed me right from the first Test and his patience and composure was seen throughout the Test. Today he further improved his game by playing an important innings in this series. Washington Sundar also supported him brilliantly.
A knock to remember by Nitish. He has impressed me right from the 1st Test and his composure and temperament have been on display right through. Today he took it a notch higher to play a crucial innings in this series. Wonderfully and ably supported by @Sundarwashi5 as well.
Well… pic.twitter.com/XA2asQVphR— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) December 28, 2024
Nitish Kumar Reddy batted at a time when India were struggling at 221/7 after losing the wickets of Rishabh Pant (28) and Ravindra Jadeja (17) in the morning session. Unperturbed by the mounting pressure, the 21-year-old played the innings with incredible patience and determination, showcasing his ability against Australia’s strong bowling line-up.
Reddy’s innings included 10 fours and a long six, in which a fine balance of caution and aggression was seen. He batted for over five hours, consistently pulling India out of trouble and ensuring the team survived the follow-on. His partnership with Washington Sundar, which stood at 127 runs for the eighth wicket, was crucial in India’s comeback.
Sundar made an important contribution of 50 runs, he played an important supporting role, which gave Reddy a chance to take over the innings. Together they thwarted the Australian attack, slowed down their pace and kept India in the match. This innings also highlighted Reddy’s remarkable consistency throughout the series. Before his brilliant innings at the MCG, he had made useful contributions in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by scoring 41, 38 not out, 42 and 16 in five innings. With India still trailing by 116 runs, Reddy’s role will be important as he will open the batting with Mohammed Siraj on the fourth day.
