Who is Nitish Kumar Reddy? SRH batter saves Heinrich Klaasen's ...

One of the most exciting prospects in the Indian Premier League 2024, Nitish Kumar Reddy, made his presence felt with a blistering knock when Sunrisers Hyderabad travelled to Chandigarh for their away game against Shikhar Dhawan's Punjab Kings on Tuesday. Acknowledged as the most promising player by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) back in 2018, Reddy saved Pat Cummins and Co. from a batting collapse with his valiant knock at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium.

Nitish Kumar Reddy plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings (AP)

With Arshdeep Singh and Sam Curran running riot in Mullanpur, former champions Sunrisers Hyderabad suffered a top-order collapse as the visitors lost half of their side for 100 runs inside the first 10 overs. Headlining the pacer's day out, Arshdeep got the better of Australian opener Travis Head for 21 before the PBKS speedster handed a 2-ball duck to South Africa’s Aiden Markram. Batting at the No.4 position for the Hyderabad giants, the former U-19 star played a mature knock against Punjab Kings.

Unlock exclusive access to the story of India's general elections, only on the HT App. Download Now!

ALSO READ: IPL Live Score 2024 PBKS vs SRH: Sunrisers 182/9 after 20 overs in rollercoaster innings

In a match where Abhishek Sharma (16), Rahul Tripathi (11) and in-form Heinrich Klaasen (9) failed to fire, Reddy top-scored for the SRH side in the 20-over contest. Smoking five sixes and four fours, Reddy achieved his career-best score of 64 off 37 balls in the IPL. Reddy batted at a strike rate of 172.97 as SRH bounced back to post a challenging total in 20 overs. While Reddy did the heavy lifting, cameos from Abdul Samad (25) and unbeaten Shahbaz Ahmed (14) powered the 2016 winners to an impressive total of 182-9 against the Punjab Kings.

Born on May 26 2003, Reddy made his IPL debut in the 2023 season against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Reddy recorded his fifth IPL appearance in match No. 23 of the IPL 2024 between SRH and PBKS. All-rounder Reddy picked a five-wicket haul in his second first-class against Mumbai during the Ranji Trophy. Reddy has batted for Andhra as an opener. He opened the innings for India Green in the Under-19 Challenger Trophy in the 2018-19 season. Reddy was signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad at his base price of INR 20 lakh at the auction before the 2023 season. Reddy gifted his family a car following his first season in the IPL. Batting icon Virat Kohli is Reddy's idol. The 20-year-old notched up a brilliant half-century in his List-A debut match.