[WATCH]- Nitish Kumar Reddy Marks Maiden Fifty With Pushpa Celebration

India all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy rose to the occasion with the bat in the third and deciding ODI against New Zealand at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore on Sunday, January 18. The right-hander brought up his maiden half-century by launching a towering six off Glenn Phillips. The standout moment came in the 27th over of India’s chase.

Phillips pitched the ball up, and Reddy dropped to one knee before executing a powerful slog sweep that sailed over deep mid-wicket and into the third tier for six. The 22-year-old acknowledged the crowd by raising his bat and followed it up with a Pushpa-style celebration, a popular gesture inspired by the hit Indian film.

You can watch the video here: 

https://www.bcci.tv/bccilink/videos/vyEzww1B

Nitish Kumar Reddy scored 53 off 57 deliveries, striking two sixes and an equal number of boundaries.

Kohli And Nitish Kumar Reddy Lead India’s Recovery After Batting Collapse

Virat Kohli and Nitish Kumar Reddy stitched together a crucial 88-run stand for the fifth wicket to steady India after a batting collapse in the third ODI against New Zealand. Their partnership followed the quick dismissals of Shreyas Iyer (3) and KL Rahul (1), both falling for low scores. Earlier, India lost their openers as Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill were dismissed for 11 and 23, respectively.

At the time of writing, India were placed at 170/5 after 30 overs, with Kohli unbeaten on 69 and Ravindra Jadeja on 7. Kristian Clarke has been the standout bowler for New Zealand, claiming two wickets. Earlier, New Zealand put up a strong total of 337/8 in the must-win encounter, powered by brilliant centuries from Daryl Mitchell and Glenn Phillips.

Mitchell scored 137 off 131 balls, while Phillips struck 106 from 88 deliveries, with the pair adding a massive 219-run partnership for the fourth wicket. For India, Arshdeep Singh was the most impressive bowler, finishing with figures of 3/63, while Harshit Rana also picked up three wickets but went for 84 runs in his spell.

New Zealand are chasing their maiden ODI series victory in India after securing a seven-wicket win in the second match. India, meanwhile, had taken the opening ODI by three wickets. The two sides will meet next in a five-match T20I series, set to begin in Nagpur on January 21.

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