Harry Brook Brutally Sledges Nitish Kumar Reddy with Spicy IPL Reference at Lord’s: “Who Do You Think You Are?”

Nitish Kumar Reddy has struggled in the India-England series so far, scoring only 45 runs across four innings at a modest average of 11.25.

Harry Brook Brutally Sledges Nitish Kumar Reddy with Spicy IPL Reference at Lord’s: “Who Do You Think You Are?”

Harry Brook sledged Nitish Reddy aggresively (via Sky Sports/X)

The tensions between India and England in the third Test at Lord’s Cricket Ground appeared unending, with Harry Brook becoming the latest participant. Brook engaged in the bitter sledging by aiming a dig at Indian all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, making an unpleasant reference related to the IPL.

The third Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy has been eventful, marked by increasing confrontations and on-field banters. Batting first, England posted a total of 387 runs. India responded well, matching the Three Lions’ run tally. In the third innings, a dominant performance by the Indian bowling attack restricted England to just 192 runs, with Washington Sundar claiming an impressive four-wicket haul.

India’s fourth innings journey was far from smooth, with the Men in Blue suffered a defeat in the end, despite initially holding a much more comfortable position. Batting in the final innings on Day 4, India experienced a batting collapse, quickly losing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill, and Akash Deep. As Day 5 commenced, the Men in Blue lost Rishabh Pant early, followed by the wickets of KL Rahul and Washington Sundar.

The sledging by the England players escalated, seemingly to retaliate for the events of Day 3, when Indian players had gestured at and taunted English openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley for time-wasting. This was followed 4 by an incident where Mohammed Siraj celebrated aggressively directly in Duckett’s face after taking his wicket. Early on Day 5, yet another confrontation occurred when Ravindra Jadeja clashed with Brydon Carse following an unpleasant mid-crease collision.

Nitish Kumar Reddy, before the lunch break, found himself targeted by aggressive English sledging. The 22-year-old all-rounder, who had been involved in the confrontation on Day 3, was mercilessly subjected to verbal taunts from the English players, primarily vice-captain Harry Brook. Reddy was relentlessly reminded by Brook of their shared stint in the 2022 IPL, where they both played for Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Brook was caught speaking to Reddy in the 30th over, aggressively taunting him by questioning ‘who he thinks he is’. He continued by stating that Reddy was an unknown player at SRH. A ball later, Harry Brook persisted with his antics, exclaiming that Ravindra Jadeja needed to score runs and that the Test series was not the IPL. The sledging seemed to affect Reddy’s mind, as a result of which he lost his wicket in the 40th over, off Chris Woakes’ delivery.

Who do you think you are? I remember when we were with the Sunrisers, you didn’t say anything there… Jaddu [Ravindra Jadeja] needs to score all the runs. This is not IPL.

Harry Brook chirped at Nitish Kumar Reddy (H/T: Hindustan Times)

Not just Brook, Nitish Kumar Reddy also had to bear the brunt of England captain Ben Stokes’ sledging in the 31st over of the innings. After defending the final ball of that over, Reddy received a verbal barrage from Stokes, to which the all-rounder simply responded by nodding his head.

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Jofra Archer also sledges Nitish Kumar Reddy after firing a brutal bouncer at him

Indian all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy endured not only aggressive sledging but also faced dangerous bouncers from the English pacers. Jofra Archer was among those bowlers, who engaged in sledging Reddy after delivering a brutal bouncer during the final day of the third Test at Lord’s.

Nitish Reddy Jofra Archer
English pacers Jofra Archer sledged Nitish Reddy after bowling a sharp bouncer at him. (via Hindustan Times)

Bowling to Reddy, Archer unleashed a sharp bouncer that forced the 23-year-old to dramatically arch his back and sway to avoid the dangerous short ball. The delivery zipped past Reddy’s shoulder and went to the wicketkeeper. What followed was notable: Archer walked up to the batter and was seen exchanging some rough words with Reddy, highlighting the match’s charged atmosphere.

Nonetheless, England have ultimately secured the victory at Lord’s Cricket Ground, triumphing over the Men in Blue by a narrow margin of just 22 runs. Ben Stokes was named Player of the Match for his performance, which included taking five wickets and contributing runs in both innings.