Kolkata: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) seam-bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy admitted he felt a sense of relief after finally producing a match-defining performance in the IPL 2026. Reflecting on the emphatic 65-run victory over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Reddy said his impactful all-round display was something he had been eager to deliver on the field.
Reddy hit 39 off 24 deliveries and shared an 82-run stand with Heinrich Klaasen while taking 2-17 with the ball as SRH got their first win of the competition. “It’s the match-winning performance I was waiting for a long time. Thankfully, it came at the right time, and even my bowling has given me confidence.
“Just trying to be positive. There have been too many negative thoughts in my mind because the last season didn’t go my way, and I couldn’t bowl last season. I’ve worked really hard on my bowling, and it’s paying off, and that really makes you feel happy, and I am happy now. Thanks to the trainers and physios, my body is fully fit now,” said Reddy at the conclusion of the game, after being given the Player of the Match award.
SRH had earlier posted 226/8, the highest total of the season, before bowling out KKR for 161 to secure their first win of the competition. Senior pacer Jaydev Unadkat, who finished with figures of 3-21 and currently holds the Purple Cap, also reflected on his performance. “It’s very early in the season, but I’m happy to get this whenever I can. I feel experience counts. It’s about not worrying about what people on the outside say. Whatever works on the day works.
“Cutters were working today, so we stuck to that. We bowled into the pitch, got some good wickets in between, got a lucky breakthrough, and got that run out. So, pretty happy with the bowling performance. We didn’t bowl well in the first game. I think we didn’t execute our plans, but today was a good performance overall,” he said.
Unadkat added that communication with the batters during the innings helped the bowlers adapt to conditions. “I think while our batting innings were going on, and obviously the feedback from our batters was that the wicket is double-paced, the ball was sticking on the pitch. So, always working together and the communication worked.
“I always try to keep two options open on top of the mark and just see what the batter is trying to do, if he’s trying to move around or if he’s just trying to clear his leg. Most of the time it’s deciding on top of the mark. Sometimes you’re going to mix at the end.
“Changing the angles, trying to keep the batsman guessing all the time. It’s obvious the pitches and the grounds make you feel like you get hit on good balls as well. So, just keep doing different stuff and make the batsman guess all the time. I think that’s what worked for me today,” he concluded.
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Caption: Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Eshan Malinga celebrates with teammates the wicket of Kolkata Knight Riders’ Ramandeep Singh during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday, April 2, 2026. (Photo: IANS)
–IANS
