Nitish Kumar Reddy, the young Indian all-rounder, recently gave an entertaining account of his friendly exchange of banter with Australian batter Travis Head during the hotly contested Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The two players, who share a dressing room at Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the IPL, carried the friendship onto the field during the Melbourne Test, and the exchange became a humorous moment amidst the competitive environment.
Reddy, who scored a gritty 114 off 189 balls in the first innings at the MCG, remembered how Head attempted to distract him with some cheeky sledging.
In an honest podcast interview with Puma India, Reddy said that Head taunted him about Melbourne’s nightlife, jokingly saying, “Nitish, where are you going to party tonight? ” Knowing full well that Reddy was not a party animal, Head went on, “Australia is such a wonderful place. Melbourne is a fantastic city; you need to go out and relax.”
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In spite of the attempts at distraction, Reddy remained calm and shot back with humor, “Okay, Travis, one day we’ll both go and party!” But the exchange did not stop there. In another Test, while fielding at short leg, Head playfully threatened Reddy, “Nitish, if you hit me, I’ll hit you when you bowl!”
The young all-rounder couldn’t help but chuckle at his SRH teammate’s efforts to get under his skin. In the same podcast, Reddy recalled another fond memory of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He reminisced about how he suddenly got a pair of shoes gifted by his cricketing hero, Virat Kohli.
Nitish Reddy reveals how Virat Kohli’s gifted shoes played a role in his Melbourne Test ton 💯
Nitish also shared a fun moment from the Test series in Australia when his Travis Head tried to distract him with some playful sledging 🏏
READ: https://t.co/s0fX0GM7wL#ViratKohli…
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“(Kohli) asked Sarfaraz (Khan), ‘Sarfu, tera size kya hai?’ (What’s your shoe size?), and he replied, ‘Nine.’ Then Kohli glanced at me, and I immediately replied, ‘Ten,’ though I wasn’t certain,” Reddy laughed.
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“I desperately wanted these shoes, so I risked it — and he gave them to me.” Looking back on his first Test century, Reddy recalled a poignant moment when he searched for his father in the stands, but couldn’t find him. Moments later, he saw his father on the giant screen with tears of joy welling up in his eyes.
To further enhance the sentiment, Virat Kohli personally congratulated Reddy on his innings, making it even more memorable. From lighthearted sledging with an Aussie friend to getting boots from a legend and having a touching moment with his father, Nitish Kumar Reddy’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy sojourn was simply unforgettable.
