COLOMBO
Team India’s batting coach, Sitanshu Kotak, has showered praise on young left-handed batter Devdutt Padikkal. The coach called Padikkal’s recent performance “really good” after the player scored a brilliant, unbeaten century during a warmup match.
Padikkal played a masterclass knock, scoring 142 runs without getting out. He hit 18 wonderful boundaries against the Sri Lanka Cricket XI. This amazing innings helped India secure a comfortable 6 wicket victory on the 3rd and final day of the match.
This great news comes at a very crucial time for the Indian team. They were worried about filling the important number three batting position. Their usual choice, B Sai Sudharsan, is currently recovering from a right toe injury and cannot play right now. Padikkal’s superb form provides a huge relief for the team management ahead of the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka, which begins on August 15 in Galle.
Kotak shared his thoughts in an interview, explaining that actual match practice is much better than simple net sessions. He noted that playing a real game helps the players prepare much faster. During this warm-up fixture, India successfully chased down a target of 207 runs in the final session.
The coach also pointed out other positive takeaways from the game. The bowlers put in a lot of hard work on a flat pitch that did not offer much help to the fast bowlers. Almost every specialist bowler managed to bowl around 18 to 20 overs, gaining valuable match fitness. Even the lower-order batters, like Mohammed Siraj and Gurnoor Brar, surprised everyone by hitting some big sixes.
Meanwhile, team changes are already underway. Right-handed batter Sarfaraz Khan has officially joined the Indian squad as a replacement for Sudharsan. He reported for practice alongside his teammates at the NCC Ground on Monday to get ready for the upcoming challenges. Overall, the team looks confident and well-prepared for the upcoming Test series.
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All in all, it was a very good practice match, but for me Devdutt’s innings also was really good.
- Sitanshu Kotak, Team India’s batting coach