SL v IND 2026: ‘Our batters, big stars became NRIs, forgot to play on Indian pitches’- Manjrekar points out while praising Padikkal

Devdutt Padikkal has made two centuries and one fifty in ongoing Sri Lanka Tests.

Devdutt Padikkal's heroics in the current Test series against Sri Lanka, according to former Indian batter Sanjay Manjrekar, have increased the significance of playing domestic cricket at home. The left-hander came into the series fresh off strong domestic cricket performances in all formats on Indian wickets.

So far in the two Tests, Padikkal has performed exceptionally well, scoring hundreds in the opening innings of both games. Additionally, the left-hander has demonstrated proficiency against spin, a trait that Indian hitters have lacked in recent years.

"Padikkal has shown us the kind of blunders India has made in the past. We didn’t realize that our batters and big stars had become like NRIs who play away from home so much that they lost touch playing on Indian pitches, where they grew up and excelled. Padikkal has shown the value of that. India blundered when they had all their star players just play outside India for four or five years, because of which none of the star players had any practice of playing on home pitches,” Manjrekar said on Sony Sports.

"His attacking skills are also an extension of his defense. Many batters attack because they are not comfortable defending, mainly English batters. But this guy looks in command at all times on front and back foot. His appetite for big runs also highlights the value of domestic cricket,” he added.

Padikkal leads all batters from both sides with 328 runs at an incredible average of over 109 in three innings in the ongoing Test series.

In the long run, Sanjay Manjrekar thinks Devdutt Padikkal is the best No. 3 hitter for India in the red-ball format. Additionally, the former batter asserted that the Karnataka left-hander could have prevented India's recent home series defeats to South Africa and New Zealand.

"He hasn’t put a foot wrong in this series, and he is one for the long run. I want to see how he reacts to conditions in New Zealand. But if Padikkal had played against New Zealand at home in those three matches, batting at No. 3, the story would have been completely different. He is one Indian batter who looks proficient against spin. India has missed a batter like him at No. 3, and he just sets the right template for the batters that follow," said Manjrekar.

Padikkal had replaced Sai Sudharsan in the India squad after the Tamil Nadu batter failed to recover in time from a toe injury.