India’s rising star Nitish Kumar Reddy delivered an impressive performance on the third day of the ongoing fourth Test against Australia as he silenced his critics with his maiden Test century at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne on December 28.
The 21-year-old showed his talent and composure under pressure and remained unbeaten with 105 strokes. Nitish Kumar Reddy’s brilliant batting was instrumental in India reaching 385/9 on the third day in response to Australia’s first innings total of 474 in the ongoing Boxing Day Test.
Nitish Kumar Reddy’s stunning century silences critics in style at the MCG
He was also part of a crucial 127-run partnership with Washington Sundar, who scored a near fifty in Melbourne. Sundar and Reddy’s stand for the eighth wicket helped steady India’s innings after a shaky start and gave the visitors a fighting chance in the ongoing fourth Test against Australia.
The record-breaking century is even more significant for Nitish Kumar Reddy, who has been impressive with the bat since the first Test, which came amid criticism from former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar who had questioned his place in Team India.
Can we get 120 from someone hitting zero? 8? Sanjay Manjrekar questions Reddy’s abilities
Before the Boxing Day Test began, Sanjay Manjrekar had expressed doubts about Reddy being considered an all-rounder as he felt it was too early to classify him. However, Reddy’s exceptional performance at the MCG proved his courage and justified his inclusion in the playing XI.
Sanjay Manjrekar during an interaction on ESPNcricinfo had said, “Look, there is no doubt about his potential and how well he has played. But can we get 120 from someone who bats zero? 8? He is clearly not a bowler who can give you a seven-wicket haul Shardul Thakur. At this point, is he good enough to be moved up the rankings and played as a pure batsman by taking someone out of shape? Then you can add an additional bowler. His bowling is not good enough to play him as a bowling all-rounder. It’s too early to consider him as an all-rounder batting player.”
PUMA trolls Sanjay Manjrekar while Nitish Kumar Reddy’s knock speaks louder than words
Now, after his stunning maiden Test century at the MCG, PUMA decided to publicly give Sanjay Manjrekar a taste of his own medicine for underestimating Nitish Kumar Reddy and questioning his place in the Test XI.
Notably, Reddy is sponsored by PUMA and the brand has not missed out on supporting their star player, but they are even too cool when it comes to taking revenge. On social media platform X, PUMA Cricket trolled Manjrekar by replying to one of the former India batsman and commentator’s old tweets about Reddy.
PUMA has posted a picture from an official photoshoot in which Nitish Reddy can be seen making a “calming” gesture to brutally attack Manjrekar after the all-rounder’s incredible century silenced many critics.
HTTPS://T.CO/JlRL7DXTFF PIC.TwITTeR.COM/MHCQ0ZbC7L
— PUMA Cricket (@pumacricket) DeCeMbeR 28, 2024
Notably, the Indian selectors had made a bold decision by selecting Reddy, who had an average of 21 after 21 first-class matches, for the high-profile BGT 2024-25, but he justified his selection with his remarkable performances in his first Test series. With 284 runs in four innings so far, he is currently India’s leading run-scorer in the ongoing five-match Test series.
