All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy will be available to play only for the last two T20Is of India’s series against Australia, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Wednesday. The board said that Reddy complained of neck spasms, which has set back his recovery from a left quadriceps injury that he had sustained in the second ODI against Australia.
Reddy was hence not in the Indian team for the first T20I in Canberra, which ended up being washed out. “Nitish Kumar Reddy has been ruled out for the first three T20Is. The all-rounder who was recovering from his left quadriceps injury sustained during the second ODI in Adelaide, complained of neck spasms, which has impacted his recovery and mobility. The BCCI Medical Team is monitoring his progress,” said the BCCI in a post on its X handle.
Reddy’s absence has left Shivam Dube as the only seam bowling all-rounder available for India, with their premier all-rounder already recovering from a quadriceps injury. Dube had earlier been ruled out in the opening round of the Ranji Trophy with back stiffness.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav rediscovered some form in the washed out first T20I in Canberra. India’s score stood at 97/1 in 9.4 overs when the players were forced off the field.
With his deputy Shubman Gill (37 not out off 20 balls) also in good nick, Suryakumar showed controlled aggression before unleashing a flurry of attractive strokes en route his unbeaten 39 off 24 balls. The duo added 62 runs off 35 balls for the second wicket and both looked good for big scores which was not to be in the end.
There were two breaks across the 9.4 overs that India had to endure and after the first break, next 4.4 overs turned out to be very productive for the visitors with 54 runs coming during that phase. The rain also meant that the ball was getting wet and Australian bowlers found it difficult to grip.
Earlier, Abhishek Sharma (19 off 14 balls), who started the onslaught with three fours off Xavier Bartlett, couldn’t gauge Ellis’ back-of-the-hand slower delivery which was pouched by the mid-off fielder after the southpaw failed to get the required elevation. This was after Gill had smashed Ellis for a couple of boundaries to get going.
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