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The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has named Karnataka batter Devdutt Padikkal in the India squad for the third Test against England, which begins at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot on Thursday, February 15. Padikkal was named as a replacement for KL Rahul, who has been ruled out of the match.
Having missed the second Test in Visakhapatnam after complaining of pain in his right quadriceps, Rahul was initially named in the India squad for the last three Tests against England. The selection was, however, subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI medical team.
On Monday, February 12, the BCCI confirmed that Rahul had been ruled out of the Rajkot Test after failing to recover fully from his quadriceps injury. Releasing an official update, the Indian cricket board said:
"Rahul has reached 90 per cent of match fitness and is progressing well under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team. He will continue his recovery process at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to be completely match-fit for the fourth and fifth Test."
While Rahul has been replaced by another Karnataka batter Padikkal, we analyze three reasons why the choice seems like a wrong one.
#1 Devdutt Padikkal’s call-up to the Test side appears a bit premature
While there is no doubting Padikkal’s talent, his call-up to the Test side seems a tad premature. Yes, the 23-year-old has been in impressive form in the ongoing domestic season. The left-hander has scored hundreds against Punjab, Goa and, most recently, Tamil Nadu, in the Ranji Trophy 2024.
It, of course, helped the batter’s cause that the chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar watched his hundred against Tamil Nadu in Chennai in the Ranji Trophy. Padikkal also came up with impressive performances for India A against England Lions, registering scores of 105, 65 & 21.
The point, however, remains that the youngster doesn’t have an exceptional record in first-class cricket. In 31 matches, he has scored 2,227 runs at an average of 44.54, with six hundreds and 12 fifties. These are decent numbers, but are they enough to merit Test selection?
Remember, Sarfaraz Khan has only just received his maiden call-up to the Test side despite averaging 69.85 after 45 first-class matches. Yashasvi Jaiswal broke the door open with an exceptional start to his first-class career. In 21 matches, he has 2,482 runs at an average of 73, with as many as 11 hundreds.
In comparison, Padikkal has been chosen on the back of a comparatively small sample size of impressive performances. He has a much better record in List A cricket. In 30 matches, the southpaw has smashed 1,875 runs at an exceptional average of 81.52, with eight hundreds and 11 fifties.
#2 India’s batting is already short on experience
Padikkal’s selection seems a bit strange since India already have a highly inexperienced batting line-up due to injury issues to players and other reasons. After missing the first two Tests, Virat Kohli has pulled out of the remaining three matches as well due to personal reasons. Rahul, of course, has been ruled out of the third Test and has been replaced by Padikkal.
Looking at other members of the Indian batting outfit, skipper Rohit Sharma has played 56 Test matches, while all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has featured in 39. There is not a lot else in terms of experience. Jaiswal has played six Test matches, Shubman Gill 22, KS Bharat seven, Rajat Patidar one, while Sarfaraz Khan is yet to make his Test debut.
#3 Like Gill, India could have backed Shreyas Iyer as well
Considering the lack of experience in the batting outfit, one wonders if the selectors could have backed Shreyas Iyer for one more Test. The fact that he has been struggling in red-ball cricket cannot be denied. But so was Gill, who came good with a ton in the last match against England in Visakhapatnam.
Iyer hasn’t scored a half-century in Test cricket since December 2022. He has looked out of sorts over the last year. However, the 29-year-old does possess experience of having played 14 Test matches. Also, the brilliant run-out he effected of Ben Stokes in the second Test would have boosted his confidence. Could India have stuck with him a bit longer?
