Devdutt Padikkal made his Test debut in the fifth and final match against England at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. The left-handed batter was handed over the Test capt by India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin, who is playing his 100th Test along with England’s Jonny Bairstow. Padikkal replaced Rajat Patidar in India’s XI, as reported by Hindustan Times on February 29.
Padikkal became the fifth Indian cricketer to make his debut in this five-match series after Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, and Akash Deep. England too have had two debutants this series – spinners Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir.
Overall Padikkal became India’s 314th Test cricketer.
The official word from the BCCI was that Patidar got hit on his ankle while practising on the eve of the match and was not available for selection. “Rajat Patidar got hit on his left ankle during Team India’s practice session on 6th March, 2024. He pulled up sore on the morning of the game and was not available for selection for the 5th Test,” BCCI said.
The right-hander, who was supposed to be released from the squad if KL Rahul was fit, however, did not seem in any discomfort in the long batting session that he had on Wednesday.
Why Devdutt Padikkal deserves to make his Test debut
In the 31 first-class matches that he has played thus far, Padikkal has scored 2227 runs at an average of 44.54 with six centuries and 12 half-centuries. He has been in particularly good form this season, scoring 556 runs at an average of 92.66 in four matches. He has also scored three centuries in the six innings he has played, getting a three-figure score every time he crossed 50. In Karnataka’s fifth-round fixture against Tamil Nadu in Chennai that finished in a draw on Monday, Padikkal was player of the match, having scored 151 and 36. His highest score this season has been 193, which he scored in Karnataka’s opening match against Punjab.
Padikkal was also part of the India A team that faced England Lions in Ahmedabad and impressed with scores of 65, 21 and 105. His century in the second unofficial Test was part of a massive first-innings batting effort that helped set up an innings victory.
The 23-year-old will have to wait to prove his batting prowess though as England captain Ben Stokes elected to bat after winning the toss at the picturesque stadium in the foothills of the Himalayas.
Fast bowler Mark Wood replaced Ollie Robinson in the only change for the tourists, who will be playing for pride after India grabbed an unassailable 3-1 lead in Ranchi.
India dropped Akash Deep and welcomed back pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah as they seek to consolidate their position at the top of the World Test Championship standings.
India XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah
England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (captain), Ben Foakes (wicketkeeper), Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir
