"It is God's plan, baby!": Nitish Kumar on partnership with Rinku Singh

Indian all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy opened up on his match-winning partnership with Rinku Singh during the second T20I against Bangladesh at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday. In his second T20I, Nitish delivered a performance to remember with an explosive knock of 74 and two wickets to go with it, helping India secure a massive 86-run win over Bangladesh at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium on Wednesday. A big part of this match was a century partnership between Nitish and Rinku which took India to a massive score following loss of three early wickets.

Speaking exclusively on JioCinema, India's Nitish Kumar Reddy shared his thoughts on the way he batted against Bangladesh in the second T20I: "We planned to play fearless cricket, and that's what helped me. I took my time, and once I saw the over where I needed to attack, that is when everything changed. I feel great in this moment." Reddy also reflected on his partnership with Rinku, saying that they did not plan anything.

"He (Rinku) was just saying, 'It is God's plan, baby!' After every six, it was 'God's plan.' We did not really think about it too much," he added.

Nitish also spoke about the game-turning no-ball by Mahmadullah and his bat change: "I practiced with that bat and felt it was very good, but I believed in another bat, so I was a bit confused. Then I changed my bat and trusted it. That no-ball gave me a bit of pressure relief, and from there, I took the game on."

On targeting specific bowlers, especially spin in the match, Nitish said, "It is my individual plan. At that moment, Bangladesh had great momentum, so we thought to take some time. I felt that no-ball changed everything when I hit the six off it, and then we got charged up and everything went in the right direction. That was the over we targeted because an off-spinner was bowling to a right-hander. It was a big moment, but I was backing my power."

Coming to the match, Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bowl first. India was reduced to 41/3 at one point, but Nitish (74 in 34 balls) and Rinku Singh (53 in 29 balls, with five fours and three sixes) put on a match-saving stand of 108 runs. Hardik Pandya (32 in 19 balls, with two fours and two sixes) played a fine cameo to power India to 221/9 in their 20 overs.

Rishad Hossain (3/55) and Taskin Ahmed (2/16) were the top bowlers for Bangladesh. In the run-chase of 222 runs, Bangladesh initially kept up with the run-rate but lost wickets continuously. Except Mahmadullah (41 in 39 balls, with three sixes), nobody could really play a decent knock and Bangladesh ended with 135 on the board with nine wickets lost. India won by 86 runs.

Varun Chakravarthy (2/19) and Nitish (2/23) were among the top bowlers for India. Abhishek Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Washington Sundar and Riyan Parag got a wicket each. India has won the three-match series 2-0. Nitish won the 'Player of the Match' award for his fine all-round show. (ANI)