India vs SL XI Warm-Up Match: Devdutt Padikkal Seals No. 3 Spot With Stylish Ton, Yashasvi Jaiswal And Rishabh Pant Fail
Devdutt Padikkal assured his spot in India's playing XI for the opening Test with a stylish century on the second day of the warm-up match against Sri Lanka Cricket XI
Devdutt Padikkal assured his spot in India's playing XI for the opening Test with a stylish century on the second day of the warm-up match against Sri Lanka Cricket XI, while seasoned campaigner Rishabh Pant and his understudy Dhruv Jurel failed to make the most of favourable batting conditions. At the end of the second day, India finished their first innings at 357/6 in 90 overs. Padikkal's artistic unbeaten 142 and a gritty 63 (retired out) by veteran Ravindra Jadeja were the highlights, while Manav Suthar (41) also impressed with the bat on his maiden overseas assignment.
The pitch had become much easier to bat on, and Padikkal took full advantage, hitting 18 delectable boundaries to show that he is ready to reclaim his place now that first-choice No. 3 batter Sai Sudharsan has been ruled out of the series after failing to recover in time from his big toe injury.
With Yashasvi Jaiswal (0) falling off the second delivery of the day while attempting to flash at left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando (1/42), KL Rahul (40) and Padikkal added 96 runs for the second wicket.
While Rahul played himself in, the sinewy Padikkal was a treat to watch, opening with a couple of cover drives off fuller deliveries before unleashing some delectable cuts both in front of and behind point. He was particularly severe on right-arm pacer Ishitha Wijesundara, who was hit for multiple boundaries. Anything short from the pacers or spinners was pulled with disdain. The famous 'Nataraja Shot' also made an appearance against the pacers.
The hallmark of Padikkal's batting was the extra second he seemed to have while deciding on his execution. His defence has also become tighter, and his footwork against the spinners has been exemplary. A pull shot off off-spinner Ramesh Mendis brought up his century in just 121 balls before he was asked to retire.
By then, he had added 72 runs for the third wicket with Jadeja, who again showed why he is a valuable asset as a middle-order batter overseas, even as his spin-bowling stocks have depleted considerably.
The biggest disappointment of the day was certainly Rishabh Pant (2), who once again played an indiscreet shot against off-spinner Mendis (2/77), trying to hit him against the turn over long-on. The leading edge flew to long-off.
If Pant perished while attempting to attack, Dhruv Jurel's (1) technical shortcomings against off-spin were exposed once again after the South Africa Test series. A forward defensive prod resulted in an inside edge that flew to the short square-leg fielder, who caught it on the second attempt.
But Manav Suthar, who is impressing everyone with his heart and commitment, joined Jadeja as the duo added 76 runs to steady the ship.
Towards the end, Padikkal came out to bat again and added four more boundaries to his tally of 18 in the company of Saransh Jain (22 retired out)
India Cricket Team
Sri Lanka Cricket Team