Back where it began: Nitish Kumar Reddy's Perth return

Life may be coming full circle for Nitish Kumar Reddy, tipped to be the next big all-rounder in Indian cricket if he lives up to the promise, potential, and expectations. It began in Perth, where he was thrown in at the deep end - left to swim on his own in a Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test, his debut game.

And here he is again, standing on the verge of a possible ODI debut at the very venue - Optus Stadium - where his impactful 41 in the first innings of the Perth Test played a key role in India's victory, highlighted by a commanding 201-run opening stand. He went on to play all five Tests in the series and made headlines with a backs-to-the-wall century at the MCG.

"If he was selected as an all-rounder, he should be starting in the XI," said MSK Prasad, the chief selector of Andhra. "He was taken in place of Hardik Pandya. Now that Hardik is not there, he should be included in the XI. He will add balance to the side," added the former Andhra Ranji player. There is every chance of him featuring in the XI on Sunday, and should that happen, the 23-year-old all-rounder will become one of the few all-format players in the Indian team setup.

Since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Nitish has featured in only four more Tests - two in the recent series against the West Indies - and before that, in a couple of matches in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England, where his participation was cut short by a freak injury to his left knee sustained during a workout session in the gym in Manchester. It was diagnosed as a Grade 1 sprain of the ACL and a Grade 2 injury to the lateral capsular ligament, forcing him to undergo treatment and rehabilitation at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence.

During his rehab at the CoE, his father underwent knee replacement operation in Mumbai, but Nitish did not visit him in the hospital even once. "It was a tough period for him. That phase gave him a new direction in cricket and life. He wanted to visit his father, but he did not want to disturb his CoE routine. He arranged for everything for his father from the CoE in Bengaluru," said a family source.

Family members say he has completely changed his daily routine since returning from England. He has streamlined his diet and regularised his sleep schedule as well. "Since coming back from England, he has been fully dedicated to preparation. If he is at home in Visakhapatnam, he's either in the gym or on the ground, batting or bowling," says his father, Mutyalu Reddy.

Since then, his knee has fully recovered - a fact evident from the acrobatic catch he took in the West Indies' second innings of the first Test in Ahmedabad to dismiss Tagenarine Chanderpaul off Mohammed Siraj at square leg. It was a tribute to his fitness, and he is arguably among the fittest players in the Indian team. Sources say he scored highly in both Yo-Yo and Bronco tests.

Gautam Gambhir seemed pleased with Nitish's progress, although he did not get to bowl much in the series. His major contribution in the just-concluded two-Test series, apart from that blinder, was a hard-hitting 43 in the first innings of the second Test in Delhi.

"Look, for me, I think it is not important how many overs he has bowled. It is important that he is gaining experience, gaining experience at home as well. Sometimes, you learn a lot just by playing a game of cricket as well. It is a Test match. We do not want to use a 23-year-old boy just on tough tours away from home. That is not going to be fair on him.

"When he has done well overseas, he deserves a go in home conditions as well. Wherever we can get the opportunity to put him in Indian conditions, we will continue to do that. It is important for us to groom someone like Nitish because, you know, there are not many seam-bowling all-rounders. We have spoken for decades and decades about seam-bowling all-rounders. So, whenever we get that opportunity, we will keep grooming him," the head coach said.