Devdutt Padikkal was the leading run-scorer for Team India in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka with 328 runs and 2 hundreds.
Published: September 7, 2026, 5:11 PM IST
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Team India and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter Devdutt Padikkal(Photo: IANS)
India vs Sri Lanka 2026: Karnataka and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter Devdutt Padikkal was one of the stand-out performers for Shubman Gill’s Team India in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka which the visitors won 1-0Padikkal was India’s leading run-scorer with 328 runs in just two Tests at an average of over 100 with 2 centuries – his first two in Test cricket.
Padikkal got the opportunity to return to the Indian line-up in the absence of Sai Sudharsan, who missed the Sri Lanka series due to a toe injuryThe RCB batter spoke to JioStar and shared his thoughts about his comeback, conversations with former India captain and head coach Rahul Dravid and more.
Padikkal opened up about his Test comeback and grabbing the opportunity with both hands“Definitely, I was looking forward to itObviously, those opportunities don’t come very easilyIt takes a lot of hard work to make sure that you are continuing to improve yourself and waiting for that opportunityI had to make sure that I was ready whenever I got itThe fact that I was told at the start of the series that I was going to be playing was really exciting, and I felt like, personally, I was at the best stage of my career in terms of the way I was batting, so I was really looking forward to it,” Padikkal told JioStar.
The 26-year-old, who was retained for Rs 2 crore by Virat Kohli’s RCB ahead of IPL 2026, has scored 4128 runs in first-class cricket at an average of 45.36 with 11 hundreds and 21 fiftiesOn his conversations with fellow Karnataka stalwart Rahul Dravid, Padikkal said, “Obviously, I’ve had a lot of conversations with him over the years in terms of batting and what it takes to really spend long hours out thereAgain, it comes back to preparation and understanding what you want to doAs long as you have that clarity in your head about what your plans are and what you want to go out there and do, regardless of the position you’re batting at, it helps a lotI think those are the conversations I’ve had with him.”
Padikkal turned out in 16 matches for IPL 2026 champions RCB and scored 464 runs at an average of 33.14 with a strike-rate of 168.72 with 3 fiftiesOverall, he has scored 2270 runs in his IPL career in 90 matches with 1 century and 14 fifties.
On batting at No3 and following in the footsteps of Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara, he said, “At the end of the day, it’s about going out there and battingIt doesn’t matter what position I’m batting at, I’m trying to contribute to the sideYes, obviously, there have been great players who have played at number three for India over the years, and I’m sure there’ll be a lot more scrutiny on me and a lot more comparisons madeBut at the end of the day, I’m going out there and just playing my cricket, and as long as I’m enjoying that, I think everything will fall into place.”
Padikkal will now hope to seal a place in the Playing 11 ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia later this year at home“As long as I’m scoring runs, I think it always benefits the sideTest cricket is not the easiest format, as we all know, so you have to keep performing day in and day outYou get limited opportunities these days, and it’s not very easy to cement a place in a sideNothing is taken for grantedFor me, personally, I just want to keep scoring runs and keep contributing to wins for the Indian Test sideAs long as I’m doing that, I’m sure I’ll have my place,” Padikkal said.
