'He's got all the talent' - Morne Morkel backs Nitish Kumar Reddy for India's ODI allrounder role

Nitish Kumar Reddy faces a critical opportunity to establish himself in India's ODI setup as the team shifts focus to 50-over cricket ahead of the 2027 World Cup. With Hardik Pandya still working back to full fitness, Reddy could receive an extended run in the format during the upcoming West Indies series, which begins on September 27 at Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram. India's bowling coach Morne Morkel has expressed confidence in the young allrounder's potential to fill a key role in the squad.

Reddy's recent T20 International performances have impressed the coaching staff. He claimed three wickets each in the second and third T20I matches against Afghanistan, taking 3 for 24 in Delhi and 3 for 25 in the subsequent fixture. Morkel has backed the allrounder to develop his skills across all three disciplines during this crucial period.

"I think Nitish, if we just rewind to the T20s, the way he bowled in different situations has been very impressive. The message to him all the time is just to keep things simple and do the basics as well as possible. I think he's a very talented guy when it comes to bat, ball and field. He always wants to be the guy who wants to create opportunities, and having that mindset is fantastic," said Morkel in the pre-match press conference as quoted by Cricinfo.

3 West Indies players who can threaten India in 1st ODI

Read More

3 West Indies players who can threaten India in 1st ODI

Focusing on fundamentals and consistency

Reddy's path to consistent ODI cricket has been interrupted by injury setbacks. He was ruled out of England's tour in June 2026 due to a left quadriceps injury sustained during India's ODI series against Afghanistan. The injury also forced him to miss subsequent T20I assignments against Ireland and England. Most recently, Reddy was withdrawn from India's Asian Games squad on September 16, just days before the West Indies series begins.

Morkel stressed the importance of consistency and mastering the fundamentals as Reddy works to establish himself in the ODI format. The coaching staff view this period as essential for the allrounder to develop his game and prove his worth at the highest level.

"I think the role that we want him to play in certain situations is: how can we ask him to be as consistent; how well can he fulfil just doing the basics as best as possible. I think that is another thing where we need to give him those opportunities to learn and grow," said Morkel.

"Luckily, we do have a bit of time now, and it will be great for Indian cricket if we can keep on developing him and for him to compete for that allrounder spot. He's got all the talent and all the ability to do that, but for us it's just important to manage him quite well, to give him quite a simple role in terms of what he needs to do for the team," he added.

Sammy targets WI's first series win in India in 24 years

Read More

Sammy targets WI's first series win in India in 24 years

Setting standards for World Cup preparation

India's schedule over the coming months will provide multiple opportunities for Reddy and other squad members to stake their claims for World Cup selection. After the three ODIs against West Indies, India will play five ODIs in New Zealand and three ODIs against Sri Lanka at home to end the year, before playing Zimbabwe in three ODIs at the start of 2027.

Morkel stressed that players must understand the standard expected of them during this crucial period. The coaching staff want to see aggressive intent and a willingness to learn from challenging situations as India builds towards the World Cup.

"Look, for me, the main focus I reckon would be: we can talk and you can look at different options, how you want to go about playing XI. But for me, the end of the day is that whoever walks onto the field now, up until the World Cup, starting on Sunday, needs to know that there's a certain standard we want to achieve. I want these players to put themselves under pressure, as much pressure. I think coming to the World Cup on the biggest stage, you can't decide a month or a week before the tournament that now we're going to step things up. I think it starts now with this series against West Indies, how, with bat, ball and in the field, we put ourselves under pressure," said Morkel.

"I want to see guys going to Shubman and asking for the ball and wanting to create the wicket opportunities and not be sort of protecting their own space. I think that will be a great goal for us. You know, if we are maybe 30 for 4, who's going to go and get that partnership and get us to 100? So if we can throw ourselves in certain situations and guys can figure out ways how to play those situations and learn and take learnings about that, there will be growth and that will help us down the line," he added.

India's medical and coaching teams are managing player workload carefully to ensure squad members are fit and ready for World Cup selection. Hardik Pandya, Harshit Rana and other players remain on the sidelines as they work their way back to full fitness.

"We're constantly keeping an eye on workload management, how to give the guys the best opportunity to be fit and put their name in the hat for selection. We've got Hardik, we've got Harshit Rana, all those guys still on the sidelines and we're excited to get them back and get them playing and get them fit again. So that's part of our job to sit with the medical side and map that out," said Morkel.

"But there's definitely a plan for each and every individual and we'll keep on monitoring that and coming up with the best way forward to give the selectors and to give everybody the best sort of group to pick from," he concluded.