Former India player turned commentator Ajinkya Rahane applauded Team India all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy’s bowling exploits in the recently concluded three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. He was the leading wicket-taker of the series, taking six wickets across three games at an economy rate of 8.77 as well.

Rahane said in his recent YouTube video: “I think he is a bowler who can take a wicket in his first over. He has that skill set, and the ball comes out nicely from his hand. He is a little faster than we expect, and the ball skids off the wicket. A captain has a good option when he has such an all-rounder who can bowl both with new and old ball.”

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Former India pace bowler Mohit Sharma also feels Nitish Kumar Reddy still cannot be termed as a like-for-like replacement for Hardik Pandya as well. He also urged fans to keep their expectations low instead of hoping that the youngster would bat and bowl like Hardik Pandya as well.

Sharma said on Cricbuzz:  “We keep taking Hardik Pandya’s name again and again, but Nitish Kumar Reddy cannot match Hardik Pandya, at least for now. What happens because of that is that our expectations will be that Nitish Kumar Reddy will bat and bowl just like Hardik Pandya does. I think that is not fair. We should keep our expectations low. His way of batting is different. He is kind of a batter who can play the big shots once he gets set, rather than hitting a six from the first ball itself. So, if we set our expectations that way, then we are wrong. He should be used according to his talent.”