'Want To See Respect For My Father' - Nitish Reddy Reveals Emotional Story After India Selection
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Nitish Reddy with his dad after SRH game in IPL 2024 (X.com)
IPL 2024 season emerging player of the season, Nitish Reddy, has received his maiden national call-up as he was picked in India’s 15-man squad for the upcoming bilateral tour of Zimbabwe.
BCCI announced a 15-member young Indian squad for the upcoming T20 series against Zimbabwe earlier today.
Led by Shubman Gill, the team will feature IPL stars like Nitish Reddy, Riyan Parag, Tushar Deshpande, Abhishek Sharma, and many more.
That being said, scenes at Nitish Reddy’s home were jubilant as the Reddy family got emotional recalling all the struggles and sacrifices they had to make to see this day.
Talking to PTI, Nitish Reddy revealed how relatives and society at large tore his dad to shreds for quitting his job just to support Nitish’s cricketing dream.
"Getting into the Indian team is a proud feeling but it is only 50 percent of the dream. It will be fulfilled if I can wear that jersey and win matches for my country. I want to see respect for my father in the eyes of those who once tore him to shreds for believing in my talent," Reddy said.
The batter’s dad was a government officer who got transferred to Rajasthan when Nitish was 12 years old. However, upon learning that the city had inadequate cricket facilities, Mutyalu Reddy quit his job to keep his son’s dream alive.
"My father enquired and found out that the city we were supposed to live wasn't great for the development of my game. My father decided to quit after talking to my mom. He got around Rs 20 lakh as final payout and decided to start a money lending business. As luck would have it, some of his close friends duped him and he lost his entire earnings"
Nitish Reddy went on to add that his dad started a small business from the payout he received from his previous job. But the family lost everything when his dad was duped by his partners.
"Everyone from every corner pounced on him for losing his earnings from service after quitting the job. In our part, relatives, neighbours were never convinced that someone should quit his job to further his son's ambitions."
While Nitish was only 12, he understood the humiliation his dad went through and that day, a teenager made a promise to himself that the only way to get back his dad’s prestige is getting an India call-up.
"I could hear those discussions and even as a 12-13 year old, I understood everything. It was a promise I made to myself that only one thing can redeem my dad's prestige -- an India call-up," Reddy concluded.
However, the job isn’t done. Reddy wants to win games for India and make his father proud by donning an Indian jersey.
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