Nitish Reddy Is Better Than Hardik Pandya in Tests": Gavaskar's Verdict

In cricket, people often compare players who do similar things, especially when new stars start doing very good in important matches this is happening with Nitish Kumar Reddy, a 21-year-old Indian all-rounder. Sunil Gavaskar, a cricket legend and former Indian team captain, has said some very wonderful things about him. Gavaskar mentioned that when you see how Nitish Reddy is doing as a Test batter and compare it to what Hardik Pandya was like at a similar point, Nitish might actually be doing better.

Reddy's Rise in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Even though Nitish Reddy hasn't played a lot of first-class cricket, he was given an opportunity to play for India in their long game, and he did very well. In the current Border-Gavaskar Trophy series playing against Australia, he's been clearly seen as one of India's top players.

Reddy, being extremely mature for his age, scored 114 runs which was really great for his first ever test century. This happened at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Boxing Day. He wasn't alone, though he and Washington Sundar together made a solid 127 runs, pushing India to a strong spot in the game.

Deep into the series, Reddy has been performing well with 294 runs from four games, and that's got him sitting as the second top scorer for India, right behind Yashasvi Jaiswal. Cricket experts and fans are extremely impressed by how he can handle the tough situations and still score important runs under all that pressure.

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Gavaskar's High Praise

Sunil Gavaskar really praised Nitish Reddy's game. Gavaskar said that when you put Reddy's skills currently facing someone first-rate, like Hardik Pandya, Reddy's manner of batting just shines through the cricket legend had a lot of notably positive remarks to say regarding how Reddy plays.

Gavaskar said Reddy is a significantly better batter now than Pandya was at that time. He also mentioned that it's not only just regarding how many runs Reddy is scoring--but how he's doing it. According to Gavaskar, Reddy has a great way of thinking for playing long games, which you don't see much in young players today. ">Gavaskar pointed out that Reddy's bowling isn't perfect yet--but it's improving.

Acknowledgment for the Selection Committee

Really good decision to pick Reddy, even though he hasn't played much first-class cricket, proved to be wonderful. Gavaskar praised the Indian selection committee, with Ajit Agarkar at the helm, for their ability to see this potential in him ahead of time.

"It's a credit to Ajit Agarkar and his fellow selectors to have seen enough to pitchfork him into the Test arena," Gavaskar noted. "This series could very well mark the beginning of a stellar Test career for Reddy."

The Hardik Pandya Comparison

Hardik Pandya has excellent batting and bowling skills in white-ball cricket for India but he hasn't done as well in Test matches. Even though he's shown he can play the longer version of the game, he hasn't been able to keep up his performance and has missed a lot of Tests because he's been injured. Pandya is a major piece of India's white-ball teams because of his powerful hitting and his skill in getting the ball to seam.

At least when it comes to hitting, Reddy seems to be significantly better cut out for Test cricket. His skill to remain for long innings and change his game depending on what is going on has made people compare him to a portion of the greatest Test all-rounders ever.

Bowling: The Area for Improvement

Everyone's been conversing regarding Reddy's hitting skills but he still needs to improve his abilities in bowling. Gavaskar mentioned, saying, If he can improve his bowling, he might just turn into the all-rounder for tests that India has been on the lookout for.

Reddy's medium-pace bowling has shown promise, but he has yet to make a significant impact with the ball. However, at just 21 years of age, time is on his side to develop this aspect of his game.

A Promising Future

Reddy's excellent start has put India in a good spot in the current series and people are saying this might (simply) be the start of a long win streak for him in Test cricket. Major cricket names, even Sunil Gavaskar, think Reddy is doing very well.

As Indian cricket continues to evolve, players like Reddy are proving that the pipeline of talent remains strong, ensuring that the team remains competitive across formats.