Exclusive: Nitish Kumar Reddy Has the Tools to Be India’s Next Top All-Rounder, says Venugopal Rao

Being selected for the Indian cricket team is a significant achievement, particularly for players emerging from regions outside the major cricketing hubs of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, or Kolkata. 

The facilities elsewhere aren't professional enough, and the exposure is feeble. All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy from the port city of Visakhapatnam, known as Vizag, found his way to Team India through the Indian Premier League channel. He represents Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The 22-year-old all-rounder scored a Test hundred (114) in Australia in December 2024, and was part of the high-profile Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy between India and England in the United Kingdom that ended 2-2. Though he managed only 45 runs and three wickets in two Tests, with a highest score of 30, before sustaining a knee injury, he will be in the reckoning for a spot across formats in the future due to his all-round skills and grit.

At Lord’s, he stitched a 72-run stand for the sixth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja, and the right-arm medium pace fetched him the wickets of Zak Crawley twice and Ben Duckett. 

Not too many international players have emerged from Vizag. Former India batter Y. Venugopal Rao (2005-06) was arguably the first international cricketer from the city, followed by K.S. Bharat, who debuted in 2023 and has played seven Tests so far. 

Reddy is the latest addition with seven Tests and four T20Is under his belt. Overall from the state of Andhra, M.S.K. Prasad and Hanuma Vihari have played for India, too.

Guidance and right circles

Rao, who played 16 ODIs for India, wants Reddy to have a long career and advised better guidance and discipline. 

"The hunger among the players from small towns is always greater; they want to make every opportunity count. The players from the main hubs have the exposure of playing in proper conditions. When you have these facilities in your childhood, you feel like going there, as opposed to not finding a bowling machine to train you. When you have to face a bowler coming at you at 140 kmph, you need to find your way."

"The IPL structure has helped to an extent. Players from small towns have seen good facilities for preparation and the culture. Back in our times, even our state association (Andhra) did not have the funds. Now it is much better. The struggle is much less, but the gap is there," Rao told SportsBoom.com. 

Rao, who made his debut under Rahul Dravid in 2005, had mentors like Sachin Tendulkar around him. He urged Reddy to find good mentors to guide his international career. 

"When Virat Kohli talks to a Delhi boy, and Rohit Sharma talks to a Mumbai boy, or an R. Ashwin guides a Chennai boy, there is a difference. It is all about work ethics and guidance at this level for Reddy and the circle he keeps. When you grow up, coming from small places, you need the right circle of friends to guide you," he added.

Expectations versus reality

India has had several seam-bowling all-rounders since the debut of Hardik Pandya in 2016, but nobody could hold on to their spots due to inconsistency. Shivam Dube and Venkatesh Iyer didn't taste enough success with the ball, while Harshal Patel couldn't express much with the bat. 

Pandya, despite being injury-prone, remains the go-to all-rounder with 16 fifties and 185 wickets in white-ball cricket. 

Can Reddy become the next big all-rounder for India across formats? 

"When you are an unknown commodity, you don't have any expectations. Expectations make people compare the players, and that's the worst part. I can't compare Reddy with Pandya or any other all-rounder; he has his own abilities. If he starts scoring runs and picking wickets, nobody can stop him. He has already shown that in Australia. If he can improve, things will fall in place," said Rao, an IPL winner with the now-defunct Deccan Chargers, and the current Director of Cricket at Delhi Capitals.

There is no clarity on Reddy's recovery from the knee injury and availability for the Asia Cup T20 starting September 9, but according to reports, it is a minor ligament damage and not a massive tear. 

"Reddy has the potential, and he needs to be fit for every game. The only thing I can say is that he needs good guidance on how to go about international cricket. Having a mentor is important. I know him and his family. He is a good student and reader of the game, and a nice person. He needs to take care of his fitness, since there are so many people waiting for a chance. In this part of the world, if you fail in one match or series, people start questioning your skills," said Rao.

If not the Asia Cup, Reddy will surely be in the squad for the two-Test series against the West Indies at home in October.