Former India player turned veteran commentor Aakash Chopra has applauded Nitish Kumar Reddy for picking up two wickets in an over on Day 1 of the third Test against England. However, he added that the seam-bowling all-rounder needs to work hard on his accuracy as well. Notably, Reddy registered figures of 2/46 in 14 overs as well.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he said, “Nitish Kumar Reddy came and picked up two wickets in one over with the new ball. Luck favored him in one where Ben Duckett got out down the leg side, but the Zak Crawley ball was incredible. It pitched, went out, and flew.”
“Nitish is a very good player. If he adds a little accuracy to his bowling, I think he brings another dimension into the side. He bats very well, but he is a work in progress in bowling. He needs to work hard on that. His basics are good, and if he keeps working hard, he will just keep getting better, and I expect the accuracy to get slightly better,” he further added.
However, Aakash Chopra also praised India’s overall bowling effort, stating that they could have picked up seven wickets on Day 1 of the Lord’s Test had their fielding been a little better.
“The Indian bowling needs to be praised, the way they were bowling, whether it was Akash Deep, who looked slightly wayward at the start, but (Jasprit) Bumrah. On any other day, you might have taken seven wickets by the end of the day. Those many wickets haven’t fallen here. It happens at times,” he said.
“One more thing stood out. Root’s number is in Bumrah’s pocket. He bowled 30 balls in his first spell (after Lunch), 28 balls were played by his (Root’s) partner, and Root was standing at the non-striker’s end. The best place to be when the ball is moving and it’s going to be difficult is to stand at the non-striker’s end. He is on 99 at the moment, and it seems like he will score a hundred. Ravindra Jadeja’s ball was also very good, off which Jurel took a very good catch, because it was a big deflection. Since not many runs are being scored, everyone bowled very well. They have kept them on a leash,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
