"Hardik Pandya plays only white-ball cricket and plays limitedly" - Aakash Chopra lauds Nitish Kumar Reddy's spell in IND vs AFG 2026 1st ODI

× Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded Nitish Kumar Reddy for bowling an impressive spell in the first ODI against Afghanistan. He highlighted that India need a seam-bowling all-rounder as Hardik Pandya plays only white-ball cricket and is often unavailable even for those matches. Ad Nitish registered figures of 2/31 in four overs as India bowled out Afghanistan for 194 in Dharamshala on Saturday, June 13.

The Men in Blue then achieved the target with seven wickets and 13 balls to spare to make a winning start in the three-match series. In a video shared on his YouTube channel, 'Aakash Chopra,' the cricketer-turned-commentator noted that India have been searching for seam-bowling all-rounders for ages, and that Hardik's appearances have become limited due to injuries. Ad Trending "Let's talk about Nitish Kumar Reddy because Bharat Ek Khoj used to be a program.

There has been a search like that for Hardik Pandya's replacement. We first searched for Kapil Dev's replacement. Manoj Prabhakar came for some time, but maybe not the same quality," Chopra said.

"So Hardik Pandya played and there was a match in Bangladesh. I interviewed him there, and he said we wouldn't search for Kapil Dev's replacement after this. He had just started playing, and he was true to his word.

However, he is not going to be there forever. He plays only white-ball cricket and plays limitedly there as well," he added. Ad Aakash Chopra highlighted that Hardik Pandya isn't available for the ongoing series as well and that India are playing with a 14-member squad.

He added that a backup is required in such a scenario. "Nitish Kumar Reddy is one more chapter of Bharat Ek Khoj" - Aakash Chopra after IND vs AFG 2026 1st ODI In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Nitish Kumar Reddy, who is the latest chapter in the search for seam-bowling all-rounders, picked up the crucial wicket of Rahmanullah Gurbaz (102 off 51) and dismissed Mohammad Nabi (9 off 14) in the first ODI against Afghanistan. Ad "We have been trying different people, but we haven't got that result.

Nitish Kumar Reddy is one more chapter of Bharat Ek Khoj. His bowling has become better. He started by getting hit for a straight six.

After that, he hit Rahmanullah's stumps with a yorker and then picked up one more wicket," he said. Ad The former India opener added that the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) all-rounder bowled the difficult overs and showed that his impressive performance with the ball in IPL 2026 wasn't a one-off. "Bowls the difficult overs in a way, and he is constantly telling that what you saw in the IPL wasn't an aberration.

He is saying that he can do it here as well. He is bowling more overs. Good seam position, speed, and control.

Nitish Kumar Reddy doing well is extremely important for Indian cricket," Chopra observed.Aakash Chopra highlighted that India would need Nitish Kumar Reddy if Hardik Pandya isn't available for the 2027 ODI World Cup. He added that the duo could even play together if both are fit and available.

× Was this article helpful? Thank You for feedback Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news Quick Links More from Sportskeeda Edited by Kartik Iyer Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded Nitish Kumar Reddy for bowling an impressive spell in the first ODI against Afghanistan.

He highlighted that India need a seam-bowling all-rounder as Hardik Pandya plays only white-ball cricket and is often unavailable even for those matches. Ad Nitish registered figures of 2/31 in four overs as India bowled out Afghanistan for 194 in Dharamshala on Saturday, June 13. The Men in Blue then achieved the target with seven wickets and 13 balls to spare to make a winning start in the three-match series.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, 'Aakash Chopra,' the cricketer-turned-commentator noted that India have been searching for seam-bowling all-rounders for ages, and that Hardik's appearances have become limited due to injuries. Ad Trending "Let's talk about Nitish Kumar Reddy because Bharat Ek Khoj used to be a program. There has been a search like that for Hardik Pandya's replacement.

We first searched for Kapil Dev's replacement. Manoj Prabhakar came for some time, but maybe not the same quality," Chopra said. "So Hardik Pandya played and there was a match in Bangladesh.

I interviewed him there, and he said we wouldn't search for Kapil Dev's replacement after this. He had just started playing, and he was true to his word. However, he is not going to be there forever.

He plays only white-ball cricket and plays limitedly there as well," he added. Ad Aakash Chopra highlighted that Hardik Pandya isn't available for the ongoing series as well and that India are playing with a 14-member squad. He added that a backup is required in such a scenario.

"Nitish Kumar Reddy is one more chapter of Bharat Ek Khoj" - Aakash Chopra after IND vs AFG 2026 1st ODI In the same video