Nitish Kumar Reddy slams his maiden Test century: Key stats
India all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy continues his phenomenal run in his debut Test series. Reddy raced to his maiden century while helping India avoid the follow-on in the ongoing Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. The star all-rounder added a century-plus stand with Washington Sundar, as India crossed the 274-run mark. Notably, Australia racked up 474 in the first innings. Here are the key stats.
A knock for the ages!
Reddy walked out on Day 3 after India were down to 191/6 with Rishabh Pant's dismissal. The right-handed batter displayed his crunch strokes right from the outset. He also defended the sharp deliveries well. Reddy kept the scoreboard ticking while Sundar protected one end. Although India lost successive wickets in the final session, including that of Sundar, Reddy completed his century.
How Reddy scripted his ton
Emotions were running high when Bumrah's departure reduced India to 350/9 in the final session. Reddy was on 99* at that time, with Mohammed Siraj taking strike. However, Siraj held his end, allowing Reddy to complete his ton with a boundary in the next over.
Reddy proves his mettle
Reddy's vigorous and decisive footwork was the highlight of his century. His application against both pacers and spinners resulted in crisp strokes played all around the ground. Notably, Reddy has got runs under his belt every time he walked out to bat on the tour so far. His scores in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy read 100*, 16, 42, 42, 41, and 38*.
Reddy attains this feat Down Under
Reddy has become the first Indian batter to score a century batting at number eight in Australia. He surpassed Anil Kumble, who previously had the highest individual score for India in this regard (87 in 2008, Adelaide).
Reddy sets these records
At 21 years and 216 days, Reddy became the third-youngest at the time of maiden Test century for India in Australia. He is behind Sachin Tendulkar (18y 256d, Sydney, 1992) and Rishabh Pant (21y 92d, Sydney, 2019). Reddy is also the third-youngest to have scored a Test century batting at number eight or lower, after Abul Hasan (20y 108d) and Ajay Ratra (20y 150d).
