"When you get a bouncer, take it on your shoulder": Gautam Gambhir's motivational words for Nitish

Nitish Kumar Reddy avoids a bouncer v Oz yesterday. Pic/AFP

Nitish Kumar Reddy on Friday conceded that the reputation of Perth being a fast bowler's paradise made him a tad nervous ahead of his Test debut against Australia, but the jitters vanished when he recalled head coach Gautam Gambhir's advice - face the bouncers as if "you are taking a bullet for the country".
Nitish made an impressive 41 off 59 balls.

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"I heard a lot about the Perth wicket. There was a bit of nervousness. It was in the back of my mind that everyone was talking about the bounce on Perth wicket. But then I remembered the chat I had with Gautam sir after our last practice session," Nitish said.

"He was mentioning that ‘when you get a bouncer, take it on your shoulder. It was like taking a bullet for your country'. That just boosted me. When he said that I felt that I needed to take the bullet for the country. That's the best thing I have heard from Gautam sir," he added.

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