Former India pace bowler Mohit Sharma warned everyone not to get carried away by all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy’s stunning displays in the T20I series against Afghanistan amid constant comparisons with Hardik Pandya as well. The youngster returned from injury in style, winning the player of the match in the second T20I as well.
“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,” Mohit Sharma said on Cricbuzz.
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“Generally, when someone is looking for an all-rounder in the Indian team, they usually go for someone who is 75 percent bowler and 25 percent batter. In the sense that he can score 25-30 runs in 10-15 balls. So, if we stop the comparison and view Nitish Kumar Reddy as Nitish Kumar Reddy, then he has certainly met all expectations,” he again shared.
Nitish Kumar Reddy has sustained a string of injuries over the last 18 months, starting with the knee injury that he sustained during the tour of England last year. Mohammad Kaif also added that the team management has played their part in
integrating Nitish Kumar Reddy into the setup across formats as well.
“They have recognised Nitish Kumar Reddy’s talent and know they have to groom him. That is the mindset set in place at the moment. But he is unable to play as much as he can because of injuries. He made his Test debut a while ago, so we are backing him. Gautam Gambhir has his eyes on him, but Nitish Kumar Reddy is breaking down on his own. He has never been dropped from the team, he has always been out due to injuries,” Mohammad Kaif said.
