1st Test: Adaptability key to success across contrasting Test venues, says Padikkal

Galle, Aug 19 (IANS) Having kicked off his Test career at challenging venues like Dharamshala, Perth, and now finally announcing his arrival in the arena in Galle, Player of the Match Devdutt Padikkal said he couldn’t have asked for a better start to his international journey after starring in India’s clinical 165-run victory over Sri Lanka here on Wednesday.

Padikkal’s marathon 167 in the first innings, coupled with a fluent contribution of 44 in the second essay, set the foundation for India’s dominant win and take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series in Galle’s landmark 50th Test match. His contributions also made India’s 600th Test match super memorable.

“Yeah, it’s been one of those things in my career. I started in Dharamshala (Test debut), then a Test in Perth, and now Galle. But I couldn’t have asked for anything better. The game was amazing. I think we played some really good cricket and really happy with the win,” Padikkal said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

Evaluating the Galle International Stadium pitch, which held up well over all five days despite taking more turn later as the game progressed, Padikkal noted that execution of skill was the deciding factor.

“Definitely, I think the wicket had its natural wear and tear. But I think it was a great Test match wicket. I think all five days it played pretty well. Definitely, it started to turn a lot more from the third day onwards. But I think at the end of the day, it was all about who came out better in terms of their skill sets, and I think we did that well,” he added.

With left-handed batters dominating the run charts in the match, Padikkal broke down the technical aspects of batting against spin on a surface that lacked sharp bite. “Not really, but obviously it being very dominated by left-arm spinners bowling a lot, I think that contributes to that.

“Obviously, it was a bit of a slowish wicket. It wasn’t providing that much bite off the wicket, so the left-handers were able to negotiate the left-arm spinners much better. I think that was the key,” Padikkal concluded. The second Test will start at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on August 23.

–IANS

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