Devdutt Padikkal isn’t knocking on the door; he’s trying to burst his way through it. The southpaw batter from Karnataka has been a force to be reckoned with ever since he made his List A debut in 2019. His numbers are such that you’ll have to rub your eyes twice to believe them.
Devdutt Padikkal’s crazy List A consistency
Prior to the 2025-26 season of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT), Padikkal averaged a whopping 79.50 in the format. Yes, you read it right. Just four matches into the tournament, that average has gone up. The consistency is just off the charts.
Placing them to perfection, the Devdutt Padikkal way A fine 50 so far #VijayHazareTrophy | @IDFCFIRSTBankScorecard t.co/TGZrcvP4ES pic.twitter.com/FthwpqS3xd
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) January 15, 2025Virat Kohli, who’s often considered the greatest 50-over batter, averages 73.35 after 15 matches in the VHT. Those numbers are unreal. And then there’s Padikkal, who averages 82.56 per dismissal. To one-up Kohli is a feat in itself. And we aren’t talking about just one season. But 6 years. He has recorded 24 scores of fifty or above in 32 innings.
In the ongoing VHT season, Padikkal has taken this consistency to another level. He’s batted four times and tonned up thrice. One of these hundreds has come in the second-highest run chase in List A history, of 413 runs. That too against Jharkhand, who are the reigning Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy champions.
Devdutt Padikkal’s List A record
InningsRunsAverage100s50sVHT 2025-264406101.5030VHT32241792.961212List A36247782.561212Padikkal would have featured in India’s team some time back if not for the competition. Rohit Sharma, Kohli, Shubman Gill, and Shreyas Iyer haven’t given anyone room to enter the top four. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad are already waiting. Both scored centuries in India’s last ODI series against South Africa.
Shreyas Iyer’s rehab setback: an opportunity for Padikkal
But Padikkal has a chance to get his maiden ODI call-up. An incredible run like this can’t be ignored. If they want to, the selectors can’t try to turn their eyes away from what Padikkal has been doing. Luckily for him, there’s an opening. Shreyas has been injured for the last 2 months and isn’t certain to feature in the India vs New Zealand ODI series.
The Indian ODI vice-captain was on track to return. He was slated to feature for Mumbai in VHT but hasn’t been cleared by the medical staff at the Centre of Excellence. Shreyas is expected to get cleared on January 9, just 2 days before the series against the Kiwis commences.
There’s a possibility that Shreyas isn’t fit for the 3-match affair. There’s no point in rushing him in and causing further harm. That’s where Padikkal can get a look in.
Probable India ODI squad for New Zealand
Shubman Gill (c), Shreyas Iyer*, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana*=If unfit, Devdutt Padikkal comes in
India ODI squad for NZ: Setback for Shreyas Iyer, blessing in disguise for Devdutt Padikkal? Inside Sport India.
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