Nitish Kumar Reddy omitted from India XI for first T20I against West Indies at Ekana

Nitish Kumar Reddy did not feature in India’s playing XI for the first T20I against the West Indies at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on October 6, 2026. Shreyas Iyer won the toss and the Men in Blue elected to bowl.

The match is the opening fixture of a five-match T20I series between India and the West Indies. India had recently completed a three-match ODI series against the same opponents, winning that contest 2-1 with centuries from Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli across the first two victories, while Shai Hope’s innings in the final ODI prevented a 3-1 whitewash and ended KL Rahul’s century celebrations. The T20I squad largely mirrors the side that defended India’s gold medal at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi, Nagoya, Japan, with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Kuldeep Yadav among players carried over from the ODI series.

India’s management rested Reddy for the first T20I because he had been part of the recently concluded ODI series against the West Indies and the team did not want to risk the all-rounder’s fitness by making him play consecutive games. The board described his fitness as a top priority given his growing role across formats.

Reddy appeared in two matches during the ODI series. In the opening ODI in Thivuvantapumam he did not bat and took one wicket while conceding 45 runs; in the final ODI in New Chandigarh, played on October 3, he scored 9 runs and did not take a wicket.

The 23-year-old has been established as an all-format player for India but did not enjoy his run against the Caribbean side in the recent ODIs; the report adds that much better performances are expected of him in the coming games. He is likely to feature in the remaining matches of the five-game T20I series against the West Indies.