Young batsman Devdutt Padikkal, who is part of the Indian limited-overs team in Sri Lanka, says he is looking forward to spending time with coach Rahul Dravid and learn from him.
“Being from the same school, the first time I actually met him was in one of our Sports Day events, where I had to present him with a bouquet – that is when I spoke to him for the first time,” Padikkal said on a TV channel.
“I have always been awestruck by how incredibly calm and gentle a human being he is. To have achieved so much in cricket and to be so down to earth, humble and kind towards everyone is incredible to watch,” added the 21-year-old, who plays for Karnataka, the state Dravid represented.
Left-handed opener Padikkal scored 737 runs at an average of 147.4 in the Vijay Hazare one-dayers in the 2020-21 season. He also impressed in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 — 473 runs in 15 matches and in IPL 2021 — 195 runs in six matches.
“To have him as our coach, you couldn’t ask for anything more and to have a mentor like him beside you, it’s just a great feeling, and hopefully I can pick up a lot of things from him,” said Padikkal.
