Nitish Reddy given green light to join SRH squad after recovering from side strain

Nitish Kumar Reddy has received medical clearance from the BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru and will be ready to play in IPL 2025 for Sunrisers Hyderabad starting from their first match on March 23 against Rajasthan Royals at home. Nitish will join the SRH squad at their pre-tournament camp, commencing this Sunday.

A yo-yo test on Saturday morning was the final box Nitish had to tick before returning to action after going through the usual recovery procedure from a side strain that he picked up during the T20I series against England last month. His score was 18; the pass score is 16.5.

Nitish featured in a practice game on Friday, where he is understood to have bowled full tilt without any discomfort. The BCCI medical panel had handled Nitish with caution: his rehab took a fortnight longer than the three weeks originally forecast. Nitish remains central to the India team management's Test plans, with a tour of England to follow soon after the IPL season ends in late May.

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SRH retained five players ahead of the mega auction late last year, and Nitih was one of them. He had a breakout IPL 2024, where he made 303 runs at a strike rate of 142.92. His bowling wasn't as impressive, as he picked up three wickets and conceded runs at 11.62.

Nitish subsequently made his international debut in the T20I series at home against Bangladesh. His stocks rose further when he featured in all five Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, his maiden Test century in Melbourne being the highlight.

After the tour, Nitish had expressed keenness to work with Bharat Arun, the former India bowling coach, in Chennai. That move, however, didn't materialise because of the side strain.