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Indian batter Devdutt Padikkal reflected on his performances during the recently concluded Test tour to Sri Lanka, saying that he was looking forward to this chance of translating his domestic form to Test cricket and tackling spin in Lankan conditions.
In the absence of India's number three Sai Sudharsan, who was battling an injury, Padikkal, who had a sensational domestic season for Karnataka and played a crucial role in Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) back-to-back IPL title win, translated his form in international arena as well, ending as 'Player of the Series' with with 328 runs in three innings at an average of over 109, with two centuries and best score of 167, including two centuries. Speaking in a video posted by BCCI, Padikkal said, "It feels great. Coming into the series, once I knew I was going to get that opportunity, I was looking forward to it that this was my chance to really prove something and make sure that I show everyone that I am capable of getting big runs. I have done that throughout my career in first-class cricket, and now I am really happy it showed in the Test arena as well. Hopefully, I can take the confidence I have got from this forward in my career." He also said that a spin challenge is anticipated when one comes to Sri Lanka, and before the series, he made sure he was up for the challenge and is now happy that preparations have paid off. "When you come to Sri Lanka, you always expect that spin challenge, and I was personally looking forward to the same, making sure I was prepared really well leading up to the series. Now I am happy I was able to tackle spin well, to the best of my ability, and I hope I continue to work on it and get better at it," he added. Padikkal had a fine Ranji Trophy, scoring 543 runs in six matches and 10 innings at an average of 60.33, including two centuries and a fifty in his side's runners-up finish, which included a marathon 330-ball 232 against Uttarakhand in the semifinal. He was at his absolute lethal in the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT), the premier state 50-over competition, emerging as the second-highest run-getter with 725 runs in nine innings at an average of 90.62, including four centuries and two fifties. The left-hander's brilliant strokeplay and consistency was crucial in the team's semifinal run. In six Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) matches, a T20 tournament, Padikkal slammed 309 runs in six innings at an average of 61.80 and a strike rate of 167.02, with a century and two fifties. But his team failed to reach the knockout stages. In the IPL 2026, Padikkal was among the team's leading run-getters, with 464 runs in 16 matches, including three fifties at a strike rate of over 168 and an average of over 33. (ANI)
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