He doesnt take never having done it before as an excuse so looking at it from that perspective,
From his three girls Nikki was the weakest in her performance today. I think if Bhavna had been the girl in that act it would have been even better (but the fish act was great). Nikki is a great dancer no doubt but she has work to do for partnering and lifts (her first attempt was great for a first attempt but again Remo is understandably not considering that).