Soon after pushing Sri Lanka debutant off-spinner Keshara Nuwantha to mid-off for a single, Devdutt Padikkal leapt in joy. He had just scored his maiden Test century — in his third Test and fourth innings — and earned a warm hug from India captain Shubman Gill, along with applause from chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir.The fluent 134-ball hundred capped a fine comeback for Padikkal, who returned to the Test side after 22 months because of an injury to Sai Sudharsan. His unbeaten 131 (178b, 12×4, 1×6) helped India reach a commanding 288-2 on a rain-hit opening day of the first Test in Galle.‘DDP’ also became the first Indian batter to score a Test century on Independence Day. Padikkal’s ton ended India’s 19-Test, 35-innings wait for a century from No. 3 — the last coming from Gill against Bangladesh in 2024 — and strengthened his case for a longer run at the pivotal position, even after Sudharsan returns.More significantly, the 26-year-old showed that he could be the batter India need to counter their recent struggles against spin. He used his feet, rocked back quickly in the crease and employed his wrists effectively to neutralise Sri Lanka’s spinners. Padikkal had offered a glimpse of his form when he smashed an unbeaten 142 off 164 balls in India’s only warm-up game in Colombo. The left-hander, appointed Karnataka captain in Jan this year, has also been in prolific form in domestic cricket.India, however, lost opener Yashasvi Jaiswal (32) to a needless run-out and Gill (16) to a poor shot against Prabath Jayasuriya. They were rescued by Padikkal and KL Rahul, who added 150 off 255 balls for the second wicket before Rahul retired hurt with cramps at tea.Replacing Rahul, Gill struck a couple of elegant cover drives before throwing his wicket away, while Rishabh Pant kept the momentum going with an unbeaten 27. Pant and Padikkal added 52 for the third wicket in 67 balls.Gill had opted to bat after winning the toss in India’s landmark 600th Test, which is also Galle’s 50th. India picked wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel ahead of Sarfaraz Khan. Padikkal and Rahul, who have batted together regularly for Karnataka, complemented each other beautifully.Padikkal reached his third Test fifty off 81 balls, while Rahul brought up his 21st Test half-century from 127 balls. The Galle surface offered little assistance to the spinners, and the pair neutralised Sri Lanka’s main weapon, Jayasuriya, after he was introduced in the 10th over.
