On Day 2 of the inaugural Test match between India and Sri Lanka at Galle International Stadium on August 16, 2026, Devdutt Padikkal hit his first Test century with 167 in 230 balls. In the match against Sri Lanka at Galle, Indian batter KL Rahul expressed his joy over Devdutt Padikkal’s first Test century, highlighting their long-standing bond since their under-19 days. Rahul expressed faith that Padikkal will go on to regularly score important innings for India.
In the absence of injured Sai Sudharsan, Padikkal batted at number three and hit 15 boundaries and a six before Prabath Jayasuriya stumped him. An important turning point in his early international career, the innings occurred in his third Test match.
After retiring on Day 1 due to right forearm cramping, KL Rahul came back to bat and added five runs before being caught for 82. He was quite complimentary of his Karnataka teammate. Rahul has kept a close eye on Padikkal’s domestic cricket career and is aware of the importance of this historic century in Test cricket.
In a video released by the BBC, KL Rahul said, “Obviously, coming from the same state, Dev is somebody that, you know, I have seen come through the ranks from under-19s and, you know, scored tonnes and tonnes of runs for Karnataka and made his way up to Indian cricket.”
He further added, “In the last couple of years, he has been waiting for his opportunity and quietly toiling in the nets and trying to get better at some aspects of his batting. We have had a lot of chats over the last couple of years that he is with the team about what needs to get better or what to expect in Sri Lanka, what to expect in the Test matches to come.”
For the previous two years, Padikkal had been quietly honing certain areas of his batting while he waited for his chance to join the Test team. Before this series, Rahul and Padikkal had talked about the difficulties of playing in Sri Lanka and what to anticipate in the extended game format.
