Nitish Kumar Reddy’s father Mutyala nervously watched from the stands as his son edged through the nervous 90s, before wiping away tears of joy as he was mobbed by well-wishers in the MCG crowd.

“For our family, it’s a special day and we cannot forget this day in our life . . . he has been performing well since the age group of 14-15, and now in international cricket, it’s a very special feeling,” Mutyala told hindustantimes.com.

“I was very tense. Only the last wicket was remaining. Thankfully Siraj managed to survive.”

Washington Sundar, who scored a fifty and shared a 124-run partnership with Nitish, said he felt India was in a good position, despite still trailing by 116 runs but enjoying playing in front of a roaring crowd of over 83,000 on Saturday.

“We will just fight, no matter what,” Sundar said. “Playing against Australia in a big series, you are always going to be up against a challenge.”I’m very, very happy for Nitish. He got an unbelievable hundred and I’m sure this will be remembered forever. The way he went about his business today was amazing. This hundred will be talked about for a very long time.”