2 min readAug 15, 2026 04:35 PM IST
Devdutt Padikkal recorded his maiden Test century for India on Saturday on the opening day of the first Test against Sri Lanka at the Galle International Cricket Stadium.
Batting at No. 3 in only his third Test appearance since his debut in 2024, Padikkal reached his century off 134 deliveries after Shubman Gill won the toss and opted to bat first earlier in the day.
Padikkal became only the second Indian No. 3 to record a century after skipper Gill in over three years since Cheteshwar Pujara’s last Test appearance in June 2023.
Padikkal walked in at the end of the 11th over after opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed run-out after involving in a mix-up with KL Rahul.
The 26-year-old Padikkal moved up the No. 3 slot for the match after Sai Sudharsan was ruled out of the series. The Karnataka captain made a fine note during the warm-up match last week, scoring a flawless 142 against the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) XI in Colombo.
Padikkal is arguably India’s next best hope to seize a long rope at the number three position. The Karnataka batter has aggregated 1,152 runs at 57.6 with four centuries since 2024, building one of the stronger No.3 records in domestic cricket in the period.
