Shamik Chakrabarty, Galle
The sun moved lower and the shadows started to lengthen. Afternoon slipped into dusk. Galle’s iconic 17th-century Dutch fort provided the backdrop, and Devdutt Padikkal revelled in his statement of intent.
Opportunities aren’t served on a silver platter in Indian cricket. Padikkal’s previous outing in Tests was a serious ordeal — a 23-ball duck on a spicy Perth pitch, against the likes of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood. He was binned after that. Twenty months later, Sai Sudharsan’s injury opened the door at No. 3. Carpe diem, said the youngster.
The spadework was done in the tour game against Sri Lanka Cricket XI. A fluent 142 helped Padikkal warm up for the first Test. On India’s Independence Day, with India playing their 600th Test, he scored his maiden century in the purest format of the game. Even if Padikkal doesn’t score another hundred in his life, he will have a fairy tale to tell his grandchildren.
Padikkal came into the game offering potential. He transformed it into performance. How did he do that? He walked in early after Yashasvi Jaiswal fell prey to a mix-up. Padikkal had a nervy start, and that was understandable. But he got a few deliveries on the pads and raced to a run-a-ball 25. Early nerves faded.
He stood tall and displayed decisive footwork, going full-stretch forward or fully back. His long stride helped him smother spin. He picked the length early. Anything a little short, he rocked back and punished. Padikkal’s batting was fluid and, with KL Rahul going at his own pace at the other end, it kept the scoreboard moving at a nice tempo. The two Bengaluru boys added 150 runs in an unbroken second-wicket partnership before Rahul hobbled off the field clutching his groin. To elaborate on their knocks would be a study in contrast — simmering fire and ice.
Make no mistake, Padikkal benefited from Rahul’s presence at the other end. The guidance of his senior partner and the understanding between the state-mates allowed the left-hand batter to flourish in the middle. It’s too early to say if this will solve India’s No. 3 conundrum. When Sai is fit and back in the fold, will he be reinstated at one-drop? Then again, whether Padikkal has turned this temporary opportunity into a permanent statement is something for the future. But on Saturday in Galle, he claimed the audition with authority.
Padikkal’s career has hardly followed a linear trajectory. A health issue, a stomach problem, had sidelined him for a long time. Questions were asked about his technical resilience. Through a tally of 543 runs in the Ranji Trophy last season, the 26-year-old rediscovered his game. And it’s pretty well-rounded. He is good at playing in front of the wicket and square of it. Padikkal also plays the sweep shot pretty well. In the first session, when the ball wasn’t quite coming on to the bat, he adjusted to that. When play resumed in the second session after the rain break, the ball started to swing a bit. Padikkal toughed out that period.
No. 3 has been a big problem area for India since Cheteshwar Pujara’s departure. Over the last three years, after the 2023 World Test Championship final, seven different batsmen have played in that position. Cynics might take this Padikkal hundred with a pinch of salt — a benign pitch and pedestrian Sri Lankan bowling. But he showed enough composure to offer hope.
At stumps, Padikkal remained unbeaten on 131 off 178 balls — India’s first Independence Day centurion.
Brief scores: India 288/2 (Devdutt Padikkal 131 batting, KL Rahul 77 retired hurt; Prabath Jayasuriya 1/77) vs Sri Lanka.
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