Nitish Reddy & Mayank Yadav To Make Test Debut? Rohit Sharma Provides Big Update

Nitish Reddy and Mayank Yadav made their T20I debuts for India during the recently concluded three-match series against Bangladesh. The duo played in all three matches and impressed with their performances. While Mayank finished the series with four wickets in three matches, Reddy hammered 90 runs and dismissed three Bangladeshi batters.

The 21-year-old all-rounder won the Player of the Match award in the second T20I, which India won by 86 runs in Delhi on October 9.

Impressed by Nitish and Mayank’s good performances in the T20I series, India added both of them in the Test squad for the New Zealand series as part of travelling reserves.

While speaking to reporters on Tuesday (October 15) on the eve of the first Test in Bengaluru, Indian captain Rohit Sharma hinted the inclusion of Nitish and Mayank in the red-ball side if any player gets injured.

According to the 37-year-old right-handed batter, Indian team management wants to fast-track the duo and monitor them to see what they can offer, and that’s why they are added as travelling reserves.

“I understand they (Nitish and Mayank) have not played that much. We want to create bench strength. If we want to fast track someone, we want to fast track them.”

“If someone gets injured, we want them to step in. Nice to have them around, have a chat, and see how they see Test cricket. It’s important to try and build them gradually. Trying to monitor them and what they can offer,” he added.

Apart from Mayank and Nitish, Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna are part of the travelling reserves for the Test series against New Zealand, which starts on Wednesday (October 16) at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

While Mayank has only played in one First Class match so far, Nitish has featured in 20 FC matches since making his debut in January 2020. He played in all three matches of Duleep Trophy 2024 for India B.

After the New Zealand series, India will travel to Australia for a five-match Test series, and there are high chances that Mayank and Nitish will travel with the Indian team. However, it remains to be seen if they will be part of the Test side or travel as reserves.