After Devdutt Padikkal’s amazing century in the first Test against Sri Lanka, former India player turned commentator Aakash Chopra has added that Sai Sudharsan would feel the pressure. He added that the star batter hasn’t been able to
seal his spot in the Indian Test side in the opportunities he has been given as well.
Padikkal, who was unbeaten on 131 at Stumps on Day 1, was finally dismissed for a 230-ball 167 on Day 2 at Galle. Meanwhile, India ended the day at 460/9 in their first innings, with Kuldeep Yadav (12* off 13) and Prasidh Krishna (1* off 4) being the unbeaten batters as well.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he said, “The pressure will now come on Sai. He was getting opportunities, but Sai hasn’t been able to clinch his spot, and I think he is going to feel the pressure. The first match has already gone well, and if the second also goes well for Devdutt Padikkal, then this selection committee will have to make a very interesting call.”
READ HERE: Shubman Gill Breaks Silence On ODI Futures Of Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli
“When you go to New Zealand for the Test series, there are only two Tests there as well, will you go towards Sai or invest in Devdutt because Devdutt is almost making himself undroppable at this point in time? That’s what I feel,” he again shared.
However, Aakash Chopra also shared that Devdutt Padikkal has had limited opportunities since his Test debut.
“The fact is that this is just his third Test match. He has had a two-and-a-half-year international career. He made his debut against England in Dharamshala. After that, he played a match in Perth. He got two innings there for sure, but he hasn’t played cricket for India for one and a half years after that,” he said.
“He was just waiting. He was scoring runs in first-class cricket, but wasn’t getting an opportunity. Now that he has gotten a chance, he has scored a century, and he dominates. He bats beautifully against spin and fast bowling off the back foot and the front foot. The hard yards he has put in domestic cricket shows that he has matured, and he is ready,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
