Star team India batter Devdutt Padikkal said that the hunger to score a lot of runs was a key factor in his big century in the first innings of the Galle Test. He also added that he has learnt a lot by watching other batters scoring big centuries over the years and tried to do the same as well. However, India ended Day 2 at 460-9 as well.

Speaking to the host broadcaster at the end of the second day’s play in Galle, Padikkal said (via Cricinfo): “I think, honestly, it’s just the hunger to score more runs. I just enjoy batting out there and the moment you get to hundred, it’s easy to relax and feel that relief. But for me, the next 20-30 balls are a really important phase that I try and make sure that I’m completely focused, completely there.”

READ HERE: Shubman Gill Breaks Silence On ODI Futures Of Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli

“I think when I get past those first ten balls after [getting to my] hundred, I think it makes my job a whole lot easier. And over the years, I’ve seen so many cricketers get big runs, get big hundreds, especially back in Karnataka, so just watching them bat makes me want to do the same,” he further shared.

On a rain-hit Day 2, Team India lost seven wickets for 172 runs onky. Sri Lanka’s spinners bounced back well on Day 2. Padikkal, however, said that the surface is not an unplayable one.

“Not [turning] a whole lot more. I think it will take probably another couple of sessions for [the pitch] to really start breaking up. But I think we know that in Galle, especially, it tends to quicken up pretty fast on the third and fourth day, so we are expecting that to happen again. Hopefully, it will help our bowlers as well,” Devdutt Padikkal concluded.