India’s bowling attack will need regular contributions from all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy on the tour of England with Mohammed Shami absent due to fitness concerns and Jasprit Bumrah’s workload to be managed, bowling coach Morne Morkel said. Team management have said pace spearhead Bumrah is likely to play only three of the five tests in the series, which begins on June 20 in Leeds, with seam-bowling all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shardul Thakur on standby to fill any gaps.
The Shubman Gill-led squad has both Shardul Thakur and Nitish Kumar Reddy for the job, which does give Team India options in the five-Test series against England. Two seamer all-rounders at their disposal on an overseas tour is quite uncommon for India in recent years.
Nitish Kumar Reddy’s stellar domestic career and a consistent BGT 2024-25
Nitish Kumar Reddy was also a part of the India A squad, which squared off against Australia A, beginning October 31. Ever since scoring 303 runs and taking 3 wickets in IPL earlier this year, Nitish Kumar Reddy’s stocks have risen exponentially. Making his T20I debut in the 2nd T20I against Bangladesh, the right-handed batter scored 74 runs and took two wickets to make heads turn.
In a wide-ranging chat with The Hindustan Times, Nitish Kumar Reddy, 21, spoke about a variety of topics, including his desire to become the best all-rounder in the world, and the kind of messages he has received from Gautam Gambhir and Hardik Pandya. More importantly, Reddy weighed in on the prospect of playing against Pat Cummins, under whom he had his breakthrough IPL season a few months back. Nitish Kumar Reddy has been fast-tracked to the Test team, and he will make his debut in the Perth Test on November 22,
Ahead of a likely debut in Australia, Nitish Kumar Reddy got the chance to prove his worth and get match practice in India’s ‘A’ series against Australia.
The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee sprung a surprise with their India squad announcement for the upcoming five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia as they picked uncapped all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy for the tour. While the Andhra star, who made his India debut earlier this month in the T20I series against Bangladesh at home, will be backed for a Hardik Pandya-like role, the selection left former chief selector MSK Prasad concerned.
Nitish Kumar Reddy’s century in Melbourne was not just a personal milestone but also a testament to his composure in high-pressure situations. Adding an emotional touch, his father was present at the Melbourne Cricket Ground to witness his breakthrough moment. This knock followed consistent performances earlier in the series, where Nitish Kumar Reddy chipped in with valuable 40-run contributions in Perth and Adelaide, establishing himself as a reliable option in India’s middle order.
The young all-rounder delivered a standout moment in the Melbourne Test, scoring a gritty 114 in the first innings despite India succumbing to a 184-run defeat. Batting at No. 8, Nitish Kumar Reddy showcased his ability to counter a world-class bowling attack featuring Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, and Scott Boland.
The Andhra Pradesh all-rounder, at 21 years and 216 days, became the third-youngest Indian to score a maiden Test century on Australian soil. Sachin Tendulkar (18 years and 256 days in 1992) and Rishabh Pant (21 years and 92 days, 2019) are the only two younger Indian players to have scored maiden hundreds in Australia.
Nitish Kumar Reddy played all five Tests in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He ended the series with 298 runs at a decent average of 37.25. Apart from the 114 in Melbourne, he scored 41 & 38* on debut in Perth and 42 in both innings of the pink-ball Test in Adelaide.
With his medium pace, the 21-year-old claimed five wickets at an average of 38. He picked up one-wicket each in Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane and two in Sydney.
Over the course of the four-match series, Nitish Kumar Reddy accumulated 298 runs and picked up three wickets, underlining his all-round potential. His adaptability and determination on one of the most challenging tours for a debutant have made him a player to watch in the coming years. His stellar performance as a lower order batter earned him a rightful place for the tour to England . Apart from his all round pyrotechnics with the bat Nitish Kumar Reddy is no odd with the ball too.
On running through the scorecards of the two ‘A’ matches so far against England Lions, both Shardul and Nitish Kumar Reddy have had their share of game time with a fair bit of both batting and bowling. Young Reddy, whose robust approach with the bat — including a counterpunching 114 in Melbourne — on India’s disappointing tour of Australia impressed one and all, batted in all four innings of the two games in Canterbury and Northampton, tallying 135 runs. He hit an unbeaten 52 in the second innings of the first ‘A’ game too.
Shardul could bat in three innings, tallying 80. With the ball, both all-rounders finished with two wickets each in as many innings. At Headingley, the ball tends to move a little more, making batting harder if conditions are overcast. India had lost by an innings and 76 runs the last time they played a Test there, four years ago.
Shardul didn’t feature in that Test. With the ball, his record in the longest format (31 wickets in 11 Tests) isn’t exceptional. Yet, he has been a performer for India in England, particularly in The Oval Test of 2021, where he hit 57 and 60 during critical phases of the game and also picked up two crucial wickets in India’s 157-run victory.
Nitish Kumar Reddy may lack experience, but in the previous Ranji Trophy season, he showed his ability to swing the new ball both ways. He was also their highest wicket-taker with 25 scalps at 18.76, which featured a five-for against Mumbai. This ability which needs to be developed especially in swinging conditions in England urged former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar to choose Nitish Kumar Reddy over Shardul Thakur.
Sanjay Bangar picks up Nitish Kumar Reddy over Shardul Thakur in the Playing XI
The Indian men’s cricket team will face England in a five-match Test series. The series opener will be played at Headingley in Leeds from June 20 to 24, and the next four matches are scheduled to take place in Birmingham, Lord’s, Manchester, and The Oval. Shubman Gill will lead India in the first away series of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will be his deputy.
For the high-voltage series in England, Indian selectors picked an 18-member squad on May 24, which includes the likes of Karun Nair, Shardul Thakur, Sai Sudharsan, Arshdeep Singh, and Kuldeep Yadav, among other Test regulars. Ahead of the series opener, former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar has picked India’s likely playing XI.
In his team, Bangar included Abhimanyu Easwaran as a No. 3 batter over the likes of Sai Sudharsan and mentioned Karun Nair’s name at six. There was, however, no place for Shardul Thakur, who scored a fifty for India in his last Test played on English soil, or world No. 1 Test all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.
“My team is Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran at No. 3, Shubman Gill at No. 4, Rishabh Pant at No. 5, Karun Nair at No. 6, Nitish Kumar Reddy at No. 7, Kuldeep Yadav at No. 8, and then three seamers: Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah,” Bangar told Jio Hotstar.
Bangar, who played 12 Tests and 15 ODIs for India during his three-year-long international career, explained the reason for picking Nitish Reddy ahead of Shardul by saying that the young cricketer from Andhra is a batter who can bowl.
“I see Nitish as a batter who can bowl. I can’t see him as a bowler who can bat. However, Nitish starts in my team ahead of Shardul. Shardul doesn’t play in my first XI.
“Nitish Reddy will play first,” Bangar said.
Nitish Kumar Reddy made his Test debut for India against Australia in Perth on November 22, 2025, and played all five matches of the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. In the Boxing Day Test played against the Baggy Greens at Melbourne Cricket Ground last year, Nitish Kumar Reddy scored his maiden Test century for Team India, but he was horribly out of form for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2025.
India will play a three-day intra-squad match from June 13 to 16 at Beckenham as a final tune-up before the first Test at Headingley, Leeds, starting June 20. The match will include players from the main Test squad and the India A team.
The five-match Test series against England will start from June 20 to July 4 and will be played in five venues for nearly two months.The first Test will be played in Leeds, then in Birmingham before moving to London’s iconic Lord’s, and the last two Tests will be played in Manchester and The Oval.
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