If you don’t go out on the branch, you’re never going to get the best fruit. This thought probably crossed Mutyala Reddy’s mind when he left his job at Hindustan Zinc to focus his life’s goal in making his son a top-notch cricketer. Thus, began the struggle and obviously, the unending taunts from the neighbours and relatives. The risk was huge, the destination far; but Reddy had a clear idea where he his son’s destiny lay.
After years of patience, sacrifice, and hard work, came the day when Mutyala’s son, Nitish Kumar Reddy broke into the Indian team. The all-rounder from Andhra received a maiden call-up following a stellar IPL season playing for the Sunrisers Hyderabad. But how cruel life could be? Days after being named in India’s squad for the Zimbabwe tour, a hernia niggle denied him the chance to play for the country.
In an exclusive conversation with News18 CricketNext, Reddy said the news of his India selection was a moment to cherish for his family but nothing can’t be done about the other part of it.
“I had this feeling that I would be getting a chance in the Zimbabwe series. And I got that short call and I didn’t know what to do. I straightaway called my father and he literally started crying… like happy tears. Even my mom was so happy,” Nitesh told the website.
“Unfortunately, because of this injury, I’m not a part of this Zimbabwe tour. But it’s a part of an athlete’s life. You have to accept whatever happens. If you ask me, this is not the point where I can stop. There are a lot of matches as well coming. I want to focus. I don’t want to demoralize myself. I want to focus on the future. What happened has happened. We can’t change it, right?” he added.
Nitish was just eight years old when his father, who was posted in Rajasthan, decided to quit his government job and stay back in Andhra to work towards his son’s ambitions. It wasn’t easy for Reddy Senior to take that step but a father put his son’s future and ambition ahead of his own.
“If I have to tell that whole story, it will take 2-3 hours to tell,” Nitish remembered.
“But cutting it short, he resigned from his job for me. I was just starting my career and was about to go to the academy in a few weeks. That’s when he took that call to stay. He was transferred to Rajasthan and had to stay there. People said if he goes to Rajasthan, how will he manage everything here?
“So my father took this decision to stay back and keep working with me. Since that day, his job has been to take care of me. In fact, he does that even today. I’m so happy that I’m seeing some progress in my game and I’m making him proud. A son couldn’t have asked for anything more than this to his father,” Reddy added.
And now that Mutyala’s sacrifice paid off and his son, Nitish, could soon play for the country, the people who used to mock them have turned graceful, even inviting the Reddy family to their homes for a meal.
“Amid all the criticism, my father somehow believed that my son is going to make big. People who backbit about him would now call my father to praise me or would invite me and my father for dinner. You can see the progress and all. I’m so happy that my father is also getting back his lost respect,” the cricketer said.
