A seam-bowling all-rounder is a rare asset in Indian cricket, and that is the reason why everytime Nitish Reddy walks onto the field, he manages to grab special attention. The youngster from Visakhapatnam emerged as one of the promising stars in IPL 2024 with his confident batting and useful bowling.
SRH's Problem: From MCG High To IPL Struggle
He was awarded the Emerging Player of the Tournament award and then went onto play for India as well. He batted at number four in T20Is for India and in just his second T20I, the batter smashed 74 and picked two wickets. He then scored a century in Test cricket at the MCG, and the stage looked set for him to dominate IPL 2025.
Nitish Reddy In IPL 2024
Criterion
Data
Innings
13
Runs
303
Average
33.66
Strike-Rate
142.92
SRH management also identified him as a talent that would take the franchise forward in the next decade or so and retained him for 6 Crore. He was expected to play a big role at number 4 in a line-up full of power-hitters, and provide that balance with his bowling too. All those expectations though have fallen apart in this 2025 edition.
Reddy started off the season at number 4 and played a handy cameo of 30 from 15 balls. It amplified expectations that he would be a dominanting force and a link between the fire at the top and power at the bottom. Things though went completely downhill after that. The batter was guility of throwing away his wickets like other SRH batters and the string of low scores dented his confidence.
Demotion Of Nitish Reddy Raises Concerns
The free-flowing nature of his batting got affected and his strike-rate also turned out to be a problem in some games. To add to the misery, his bowling skills could not be used as he was not completely fit to bowl. The struggle of Nitish Reddy also reflected in the overall performance of SRH, and they decided to demote him in the batting order, giving chance to a rookie Aniket Verma to bat above him.
Nitish Reddy In IPL 2025
Criterion
Data
Innings
11
Runs
182
Average
22.75
Strike-Rate
118.95
Thus, it is quite a fall for a player who is considered as one of the premier options for a number 4 spot in the Indian T20I side, and an important asset in Test cricket. He has started bowling after the suspension, and it is a healthy sign for future, especially with England Test series coming up. However, for SRH, it has been a disappointing season, and Nitish Reddy's unexpected failure has turned out to be quite anticlimactic after the highs of 2024.
Nitish Reddy in IPL (Source: AP Photos)
 "Aashay Chopade")
