Sourav Ganguly heaps praise on Devdutt Padikkal; hints at national call after IPL heroics

BCCI President and former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly lavished praise on Devdutt Padikkal for his outstanding performance in his maiden IPL season this year.  Over the years, we have seen several youngsters take the Indian Premier League by storm and make a name for themselves. One such youngster who had made a mark in the ongoing Dream11 IPL 2020 is Bangalore opener Devdutt Padikkal. 

Speaking to a news daily, Ganguly said that he is hopeful that Padikkal will get his game right at the top level, adding that he could in contention as the next opener of the India National Cricket Team, especially in the T20 format.

“He is a very good talent. Although T20 cricket is the first step…I saw him play an innings at Eden Gardens in the Ranji Trophy semi-final in Bengal vs Karnataka…Karnataka was a strong side and he stood tall. He’s got talent and time when he plays fast bowling. Let him go through a couple of seasons because the second season will be a lot harder. India want openers so hopefully, he will get his game right at the top level,” Ganguly said.

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Padikkal had a sensational debut in the Dream11 IPL 2020 as the southpaw scored runs consistently for his side. Much was expected from Padikkal coming into the tournament after he ended up as the highest run-getter in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2019 (India's premier domestic T20 competition). The left-hander has managed to live up to the expectations of the fans, as well as. He ended the tournament as the leading run-scorer for his team ahead of the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.

The Padikkal Dream11 IPL stats are nothing short of spectacular. The Padikkal Dream11 IPL stats include the 473 runs he has scored in 15 matches at an average of around 33.71 and strike-rate of 126.54. In doing so, Padikkal achieved a major feat as he set the record for most runs scored by an uncapped player in a single Dream11 IPL season. Moreover, he also became the batsman with most fifty or fifty-plus scores in a debut season.

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