Entrusted with the task of shepherding Sunrisers Hyderabad's middle-order, young Nitish Reddy has been doing the job with aplomb at a time when he is seen by many as a future India all-rounder, thanks to his ability to bowl lively medium pace.
Opting to bat in the IPL game against table-toppers Rajasthan Royals here on Thursday, Reddy (76 not out) and Travis Head (58) produced explosive fifties, while Heinrich Klassen made an unbeaten 19-ball 42 to power SRH to 201 for three.
Experienced seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar then did the star turn with a sensational final over as SRH pulled off a heist, stunning RR by just one run in a last-ball thriller to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Nitish, 20, stated that his role was to rebuild the innings after quick wickets.
"From the last two matches, we are losing quick wickets and I have to go. My role is to carry on till the 13th and 14th over so that Klaasen gets a license to bang. There is no point in Klaasen and Samad coming early, but not getting to score freely," said Nitish at the post-match press conference.
The all-rounder hailed Bhuvneshwar after the veteran pacer bowled a brilliant final over to help Hyderabad seal a dramatic win.
Nitish said he was hopeful that Bhuvneshwar would be able to defend 13 runs in the last over.
“I was looking at who was going to bowl. When I saw Bhuvneshwar was going to bowl, I got the confidence that he was going to pull it off.”
"During his prime, he had done it so many times. I did not think we were going to win, I thought either we'd lose or tie. But that last-ball wicket, I felt so happy," Nitish said.
During his explosive knock, Nitish smashed RR's in-form Yuzvendra Chahal for two fours and two sixes in the 13th over. Nitish said that he backed himself to attack the seasoned leg-spinner.
Reddy also said the victory against RR, following losses to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Chennai Super Kings, is important.
"Beating RR will boost our confidence, they are at the top of the points table," he concluded.
Not in my best form: Parag
Rajasthan Royals batter Riyan Parag returned to the top five in the Orange Cape race after striking his fourth fifty of the season.
The 22-year-old Parag slammed 77 off 49 balls but could not help his side chase down the target set by SRH.
Despite his breakout season with the franchise, Parag said he was not in his best form since he could not finish the game.
"I got a lot of areas to improve. I am not in my best form, I would have finished the game otherwise.
"I got a lot of areas to perfect. I try to learn from my mistakes and not repeat them. Is it my best innings? No. I would say that if I get a hundred," Parag told reporters.
The Assam player said the loss was "dramatic", adding that his team made a few errors.
"It is never good to end on the losing side. We did a lot of things right. We will focus on them more rather than dwelling on our mistakes. We are at a good position in the points table. Just one bad game I guess.
"We made a few errors in two-three overs and it cost us the game. That is how T20 is, IPL is," he said.
