IPL 2021: “I always have a particular role that I have to play” - Devdutt Padikkal
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) opener Devdutt Padikkal has said that he always tries to do to the best of his ability whatever his team wants him to.
Devdutt Padikkal was the standout performer for RCB in Thursday’s dominating 10-wicket triumph over Rajasthan Royals in Mumbai. He smashed an unbeaten 101 off only 52 balls and featured in an unbroken 181-run stand for the first wicket with captain Virat Kohli (72 not out off 47).
Although Devdutt Padikkal had an impressive IPL campaign last year as well, there were question marks over his strike rate against spinners in the middle overs. Asked if he made a conscious effort to work on that aspect of his game, Devdutt Padikkal replied in the negative.
Responding to a query from Sportskeeda in this regard, the RCB opener elaborated:
“To be honest, it is about the situation of the game. I always have a particular role that I have to play. I look to do that as well as possible. Yes, sometimes it can get challenging in the middle overs. It is not easy to hit the boundaries all the time.”
Talking about RCB's win in Mumbai, Devdutt Padikkal said that, with Virat Kohli also batting well at the other end, things became easier for him.
“It was a really good wicket, and we were having a good partnership together. We were complementing each other well. In that situation, it is easier to hit those boundaries because we were always rotating strike, and that’s why it just clicked today,” said Devdutt Padikkal.
Wanted to carry on after the start: Devdutt Padikkal
Devdutt Padikkal scored five fifties in IPL 2020 from 15 games, ending the season with a top score of 74.
The elegant left-hander admitted that he was hungry for a big score on Thursday, and also added that the wicket he played on made life easier, saying:
“It was a really good wicket, and we got off to a very good start. From there, I just wanted to carry on. Both the wickets, the Chennai wicket and the Mumbai wicket, are completely different. And the roles that we play are completely different on such wickets. It was just purely on the match day, and I was just happy that I was able to do that today.”
RCB were set 178 to win against RR on Thursday. They did so with aplomb, romping home with 21 balls to spare to remain the only unbeaten team in IPL 2021.