India all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy is eager to avoid injuries and is continuously working on handling the workload that comes with carrying dual responsibilities with both bat and ball.
Reddy hit an unbeaten 26 off 13 balls, claimed a wicket, and put on 69* runs for the seventh wicket alongside Tilak Varma, helping India secure a thrilling four-wicket victory in the second T20 International against New Zealand.
The all-rounder admitted that managing his workload is an ongoing process, with the demands stretching beyond match days into training sessions.
"As I am getting to understand, you guys have to also understand that I am an all-rounder. I have to do both batting and bowling; even in practice, I have to do my workloads. The amount of work I have to do on the field and off the field. It is just something that I am working on, and nobody likes to get injured. I am happy that I am playing for the Indian team. It is about each and every day.
The next day, if I turn up and play for my team, that would be a great sign for me, no matter where I play. But I hope I don't get injured, but I am still in the process,” Reddy said at the post-match press conference.
Reddy claimed that while India faced pressure during the chase, the players were able to maintain their composure because of the belief that head coach Gautam Gambhir instilled in them.
"There was no message actually, but Gautam sir kept telling us that no matter what situation we are in, we have to keep believing in ourselves. So, we just did that, and that's what actually happened. He didn't give us any extra pressure to straight away go in and bang, bang, bang. We just played to ourselves, and I think we are pretty much experienced players as well," he said.
Reddy stated that staying composed at the crease, reading the bowlers' tactics, and waiting for the right moment to swing the match back in their favor was essential.
"You have to have an eye on everything; if the bowler has already bowled a bouncer, he might go for your yorkers or something like that. It is just tactical things. We have to keep working on it. If you keep calm, if you just work on your batting, if you just keep staying at the crease, the right moment can come at any moment, and then the game just changes and you will be on the upper hand. And that's what exactly happened today. It doesn't happen every time, but you have to keep believing," he said.
Reddy credited New Zealand bowlers for putting India under pressure during the first six overs and middle overs.
"I would give credit to Matt Henry. He was bowling pretty well, and the other bowlers, Jacob Duffy as well. They had a pretty good powerplay. They kept pressure on us and in the middle of us as well. The way Santner was bowling and the other guys were bowling, they really bowled well," he said.
Reddy stated that his partnership with Tilak was founded on hard running between the wickets and capitalizing on the chances that presented themselves.
"As I just mentioned, it is just about one good over, and the game just changes, and you can see they are getting under pressure. That's the moment we caught on. Then I and Tilak were just running between wickets. I would say that was awesome. I was feeling so fantastic about it. That's where we won the game," he signed off.
The third T20I of the series will be played in Wellington on October 27.
(PTI inputs)
