Nitish Kumar Reddy’s journey from a mischievous child to a rising star in Indian cricket is deeply intertwined with the sacrifices made by his father, Mutyalu Reddy and the unwavering support of his childhood coach, Kumar Swamy.
On Saturday, at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground, Nitish’s dedication paid off when he scored a remarkable century during the Boxing Day Test. This performance followed a successful debut tour of Australia and confirmed his place in the national side.
Swamy, who has known Nitish since he was six years old, believes that the success of the allrounder is as much a result of his father’s determination as it is of Nitish’s own hard work.
“Everyone wants to be a hero in their cinema but when it comes to Nitish’s story it is Mutyalu who is the hero,” he said.
“It is his father’s hard work which fuels Nitish to achieve something in life. He witnessed everything his father had undergone. Especially there was a lot of criticism even from his close family members about him not having a job and wasting his time, but the father never gave up.”
Nitish, 21, had already made his international debut in October against Bangladesh and marked his Test debut in Perth.
His father Mutyalu recalled the shock he felt when he first learned of his son’s Test call-up: “When he told me that he was going to play a Test match for India I did not know how to react. If you were expecting you would have had some reaction to it but neither I nor Nitish expected the call this early in his career. For 10 minutes I was in a state of shock,” he said. “I had to reconfirm with him if he was telling the truth.”
Nitish himself reflected on the sacrifices that have shaped his career: “To be honest, I was not serious when I was young. My father left his job for me and there has been a lot of sacrifice behind my story. One day, I saw him crying because of the financial problems we were facing and I was like, this is not how you can be. Then I got serious. I gave my first jersey to him and saw the happiness on his face.”
Despite his rising fame and a retention fee of Rs 6 crore from Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, the family continues to live in a rented house on the outskirts of Visakhapatnam in Madhurawada.
“A few franchises wanted Nitish to get out of SRH and offered money over 15 crores,” said Mutyalu. “When I told him about the offers, Nitish in return questioned me ‘Who gave us life, where did I get my name from?’ I replied SRH. Then he said ‘Why should I leave them? If I do leave for the franchise which is giving me more money I have to prove myself again, even if I fail once I will be benched. But with SRH even if I have a couple of poor scores they will back me.’ I encouraged him to keep going ahead with this thought process.”
The Reddy family’s humility and perseverance are key themes of Nitish’s success story, which started when he was a mischievous child looking for something to occupy his time.
“I just wanted his mind to get occupied by something at the time but eventually he found his calling in it,” Mutyalu recalled.
Swamy, who first noticed Nitish’s dedication at the Zinc Ground, added, “He used to come from school every day at 3:00 in the afternoon. No matter how hot it was he used to turn up and watch matches then go and do his practice and return to watch matches. That is where I first noticed his dedication.”
At the VDCA academy, Nitish’s natural aptitude for cricket became evident. “In a summer camp at VDCA, he used to pick up batting stance and grip very quickly so we gave him the opportunity,” Swamy said.
However, his early years were not without challenges. In 2013, at the age of 13, Nitish’s performances were inconsistent, leading to doubts about his potential. His father was advised to focus on his studies instead of cricket. Unfazed, Mutyalu ramped up Nitish’s training, taking him to the Municipal Stadium and Pothinamallaya Palem for higher-quality practice sessions.
His efforts paid off when Nitish was selected for the district team the following year. However, another challenge came when Nitish suffered a swollen ankle before an important match.
Swamy insisted that Nitish be included in the squad and despite the team’s loss, Nitish repaid his coach’s faith by scoring impressive runs in subsequent matches, eventually securing a spot in the state U14 team.
Swamy’s belief in Nitish continued to grow as he showed remarkable game awareness at a young age.
“Usually how do slip fielders’ mindset work? They are just anticipating for edges to come their way, but Nitish once seeing that the batter was trying to sweep the ball walked across the keeper to take that catch,” Swamy recalled. “He missed and it went for a boundary, but he had that presence of mind at 14 years, and told us he was ready for the next level.”
By the age of 16, Nitish had set his sights on playing for India. After an injury ruled him out of a tour to Zimbabwe, he decided to focus on improving his fitness.
“He was a foodie. Whatever we cooked fish, prawns and chicken he used to eat it without a limit. But now he weighs before taking everything. For instance, one day it is 200 grams of chicken and one day it is 500 grams of prawn,” Mutyalu explained, noting how Nitish’s commitment to his diet has helped him reach his full potential.
Another significant aspect of Nitish’s growth has been his bowling. Early on, he showed a natural ability to bowl brisk medium pace.
Vikram Verma, who worked with Nitish at the U14 state level, saw his potential and helped him develop his bowling skills. “He was a natural athlete and he could bowl quickly. He also was a quick learner and he always had the gift of pace from an early age,” Verma said.
Through rigorous training and video analysis, Nitish’s pace increased and he now regularly bowls in the mid-130kph range, occasionally reaching speeds of 140kph.
Nitish’s career gained momentum when he was picked as a net bowler for Chennai Super Kings in 2021. His breakthrough came in the 2023 IPL auction, where Sunrisers Hyderabad secured him for Rs 20 lakh. Since then, he has continued to shine on the international stage, with his recent century at the Melbourne Cricket Ground marking the culmination of years of hard work and perseverance.
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