Nitya shows shades of famous brothers with 94 vs Oz Colts
CHENNAI: 'Pandya' rings a bell on the Indian cricket circuit and there's a new Vadodara boy with the surname who is following the footsteps of the more famous ones - Hardik and Krunal.
Nitya J Pandya took inspiration from the famous Pandya brothers when he moved to Vadodara chasing his cricketing dreams. On Monday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the 18-year-old turned heads not because of the familiar surname, but for his valiant 94 (135b, 12x4) in the second Youth Test against Australia U-19.
The left-handed batter hails from a small village called Anjana in Rajasthan. "I had to travel a lot to reach my coaching centre in Jaipur, which was far from my village. So my father and I decided to move to Vadodara. At that point in time, the Pandya brothers became famous, and we took inspiration from that and shifted. For the past six years, we have been living in Vadodara. I train at the Motibaug Cricket Club," said Nitya.
Apart from Nitya's promising knock, half-centuries from KP Karthikeya (71, 99b; 9x4, 1x6), skipper Soham Patwardhan (61*, 120b, 6x4) and Nikhil Kumar (61, 93b, 7x4) powered India U-19 to a solid 316-5 on the opening day.
After electing to bat, India faced an early setback when opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi was dismissed in the seventh ball of the day, caught behind by keeper Alex Lee Young off a short ball from Harry Hoekstra (2-29).
Nitya, who usually opens the innings, walked in at No. 3 and quickly set the tone by punishing left-arm pacer Harry for three boundaries - one driven through covers, another past mid-on, and the final one deftly placed to third man. However, Nitya soon lost his partner Vihaan Malhotra, who missed a sweep shot and was bowled by leg-spinner Vishwa Ramkumar.
Nitya found an able ally in Karthikeya and the duo formed a strong partnership, adding 112 runs in 27.1 overs for the third wicket. Nitya carefully picked his shots to find the gaps and rotated the strike. This strategic approach not only helped him build his innings but also maintained the momentum for India.
Nitya said the target for him was to play throughout the day. "We lost an early wicket, so the focus was to not lose wickets. We were just focusing on building a partnership. We were not always eager to go for boundaries. Even if we were unable to hit boundaries, we kept rotating the strike. If the strike rotation is good, the opposition will automatically feel low," explained Nitya.
Nitya eventually gave in to a short ball from Harry, who was making the most of the pitch, which offered low and inconsistent bounce. He mistimed a pull and was caught at deep square leg by Lachlan Ranaldo. A few overs later, Karthikeya followed him after giving a catch to mid-on fielder Aidan O Connor off Christian Howe.
Following the sturdy groundwork done by Nitya and Karthikeya, the two new batters at the crease - Soham and Nikhil - kept the scoreboard ticking. The pair stitched a 105-run stand in 31.1 overs for the fifth wicket to further consolidate India's innings. As stumps approached, Soham closed the day on a high by striking Vishwa for two consecutive boundaries.
Brief scores: India U-19 316-5 in 90 overs (Nitya J Pandya 94, KP Karthikeya 71, Soham Patwardhan 61 batting, Nikhil Kumar 61; Harry Hoekstra 2-29) Vs Australia U-19
