Father Quit job to make his son a cricketer: Today, son Nitish Reddy Shines from Under-14 to international cricket
In the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 being played against Australia in Melbourne, Indian player Nitish Reddy has attracted everyone's attention by scoring the first century of his career. This historic inning of Nitish is being discussed everywhere. But his journey to reach this point was not easy at all. Behind his success is the great contribution and sacrifice of his father Mutyala Reddy. Let us know the story of Nitish Reddy in his journey from Under-14 to Melbourne.
Father's sacrifice became the foundation of success
According to reports, Nitish Reddy's father Mutyala Reddy used to work in Hindustan Zinc Company. The father recognized his son Nitish's passion for cricket in his childhood. Born in Visakhapatnam in 2003, Nitish used to go to the stadium since childhood. When Nitish was around 12 or 13 years old, his father was transferred to Udaipur.
After this, the father realized that this could affect Nitish's career and then he decided to quit his job. Father's decision to quit the job had to face criticism. However, Mutyala Reddy still stuck to his decision.
Shining star from Under-14
Former Team India player MSK Prasad identified Nitish Reddy's talent. MSK Prasad had noticed Reddy during the local matches of Under-12 and Under-14. After this, Nitish got a chance to play cricket for Andhra Pradesh at the age of just 17. In 2020, Nitish made his first-class debut for Andhra Pradesh.
Before making his first-class debut, Nitish had made a splash in the 2017-18 Vijay Merchant Trophy. He scored 1237 runs in the series at an average of 176.41. During this, a triple century, two half-centuries and two centuries came from Nitish's bat. Apart from this, Nitish played an innings of 441 runs in 366 balls in the match against Nagaland. Nitish considered Virat Kohli as his idol. In 2018, BCCI selected Nitish as the best cricketer in the Under-16 category. During this time Nitish met Virat Kohli.
Recognition from IPL
IPL gave real recognition to Nitish Reddy, who made a splash in domestic cricket. In 2023, he was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs 20 lakh. However, Nitish did not get many opportunities in 2023. Then in 2024, Nitish took full advantage of the opportunities he got from Hyderabad in the IPL, scoring 303 runs while batting in 11 innings and taking 3 wickets in 7 innings.
Impressive start in international cricket
After this, Nitish made his international debut in October 2024 through the T20 series played against Bangladesh. Then Nitish got a chance to debut through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and by scoring 41 and 38* runs in the very first match, he showed why he was selected in the team.