"Happy tears of my parents made my day...": SRH's Nitish after match-winning knock against PBKS

Nitish Reddy secured the 'Player of the Match' award as he helped SRH secure a win over PBKS by two runs after overcoming a late onslaught by Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma.

"I am really very happy that I made my father proud. He fought against all odds to make me what I am today, he sacrificed his life for me. Those happy tears from my parents after last game made my day more special," said the Instagram post from Nitish.

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Nitish played a knock of 64 in 37 balls, with four boundaries and five sixes, guiding SRH out of troubled waters to lift them up to 182/9 in 20 overs. Later during the run-chase by PBKS, he got the wicket of hard-hitting Jitesh Sharma and ended with figures of 1/33 in three overs. He earned the 'Player of the Match' award for his performance.

In his first IPL 2024 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Nitish had hit the match-winning six to hand the five-time champions a rare home defeat. He ended with a score of 14*.

The 20-year-old was bought by SRH last year for Rs 20 lakh, but played just two matches in which he did not get to bat and could not pick up a wicket either.

Nitish plays for Andhra Pradesh in domestic cricket. He has played all formats of cricket for AP. In nine T20s, he has scored 170 runs in six innings at an average of 34.00 and a strike rate of 120.56, with one fifty.

In 22 List-A matches, he has made 403 runs in 15 innings at an average of 36.63, with four fifties and best score of 60*. He has also taken 14 wickets.

In 17 First-Class matches, Nitish has made 566 runs in 28 innings at an average of 20.96, with a century and two fifties. His best score is 159. He has also taken 52 wickets.

Coming to the match, PBKS opted to bowl first. SRH was reduced to 100/5 in 13.1 overs at one point. A 50-run partnership between Nitish Reddy (64 in 37 balls, with four boundaries and five sixes) and Abdul Samad (25 in 12 balls, with five fours) helped SRH push the score to 182/9 in 20 overs.

Arshdeep Singh (4/29) was the pick of the bowlers. Harshal Patel (2/30) and Sam Curran (2/41) were also great with the ball. Kagiso Rabada took a wicket for PBKS.

In the run-chase of 183, PBKS lost wickets frequently and were reduced to 114/6 in 15.3 overs. A remarkable fightback from Shashank Singh (46* in 25 balls, with six fours and a six) and Ashutosh Sharma (33* in 15 balls, with three fours and two sixes) almost sealed a win for Punjab, but they fell short by two runs.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/32) was the pick of the bowlers for SRH. Skipper Pat Cummins, Jaydev Unadkat, T Natrajan, and Nitish Reddy took a wicket each for SRH. (ANI)