Shubman Gill has opened up on the need to give game time to Nitish Kumar Reddy and why he deserves to be given more opportunities in home conditions. Out of the eight Tests Nitish has played so far, only one has been at at home. Gill called it "unfair" for a player to play only in away conditions. He also commented on the all-round utility Nitish brings to the table, emphasising on his value as a cricketer.
"There have been conversations about that. We suffer a shortage of third-fourth seamers on tracks
assisting pacers away from home. It would be unfair if we only play him overseas. Especially, we are not going to play in overseas conditions much over the next one-and-a-half years, and it would mean not giving him many chances (if he only plays overseas). To be able to back a guy who can bowl 10-15 overs for us in a day and can bat as well," stated Gill, as quoted by The Tribune.
Gill underscored the significance of Nitish's performances during the 2024-25 tour of Australia and remarked that the team management would want to help nurture him by giving Nitish as many chances at home as possible.
"We saw how he batted in Australia, so there is definitely a lot of ability and a lot of potential in him. So, we want to give him as much game time, especially in India and want to help him. And according to the match and according to the situation where we feel he can bat up the order or down the order, we will keep that in the mind," he added.
Nitish has played eight Tests and four T20Is for India until now. He was a part of the recent innings victory against West Indies in the series-opening clash in Ahmedabad. Gill's statements could well mean that Nitish starts in the second match too. The second game is scheduled to commence on Friday, October 10, in Delhi.
