Devdutt Padikkal: Overcoming health complications to land a dream Test debut
Bengaluru (PTI): Devdutt Padikkal beamed broadly while receiving his India Test cap from Ravichandran Ashwin on Thursday but the happy exterior masked the struggles the 23-year-old had to go through over the last two years to reach this dream point.
After making his India debut in 2021 during a T20I against Sri Lanka, Devdutt's career graph did not go up as expected due to a COVID-19 infection and a stomach-related health complication.
"Those two years (2021 to early 2023), he was struggling to stay fit and healthy. He suffered from loss of weight too. It was a constant stomach bug that was troubling him.
"We kept talking to each other over phone, and incidentally, I was also having the same condition and we were consulting the same doctor in the Jain Hospital without each other knowing," Irfan Sait, the founder of Karnataka Institute of Cricket (KIOC), told PTI.
"Mohammed Naseerudden, another coach here, too has been close to him and kept in touch with him during those low-mood phases."
However, Devdutt has this in-built streak of determination to hurdle over obstacles.
"I have known Devdutt from the age of 11 when he relocated to Bangalore from Hyderabad to pursue a career in cricket. He was a determined kid and the illness did not change anything.
"He worked really hard on his fitness and diet ahead of the 2023 season because he wanted to get back to the place where he was in 2020-21," he said.
The hard work did not go in vain. The graceful left-hander had a fine 2023-24 season for Karnataka across the formats.
He opened the season scoring 119 runs in five T20s while striking at 118 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy but bettered those stats in the ensuing Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Devdutt was the highest run-getter for Karnataka with 465 runs from five matches with two hundreds and three fifties. He averaged a mind-boggling 155 in that tournament and struck runs at 120.46.
But he slipped into his real self in the Ranji Trophy. Devdutt could play only four matches, courtesy his national duties, but emerged as the leading run-scorer for the state with 556 runs.
He averaged 92.66 and registered three hundreds, including a season-topping 193 against Punjab.
But his 105 for India A against England Lions at Ahmedabad and 151 against Tamil Nadu at Chennai turned the tide for him, as the latter innings was seen in person by chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
"Once KL Rahul did not pass the fitness test (ahead of the third Test against England), India needed a replacement.
"Rahul Dravid and Ajit Agarkar held a brief discussion and the latter was mighty impressed with Devdutt after that Chennai innings and recommended his name," said a BCCI official on conditions of anonymity.
Sait was confident that Devdutt would exploit this opening to the hilt.
"There is absolutely nothing in his life apart from cricket. I know him as a child and he has been a topper in the U14, U16 and U19 levels. He worked very hard to add batting skills after starting as an off-spinner.
"Now, the way he battled past his health complications is a tribute to his character and determination. There would not have been a happier person than me when I got a message from him about his impending first Test," he added.
Other debutants like Dhurv Jurel, Akash Deep and Sarfaraz Khan have had their moments in this series against England. Now, it's the turn of Devdutt to add a page to that flipbook.
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Congress committed to social justice, says Karnataka CM; hits out at JD(S), BJP
BJP Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that the Congress remains firmly committed to social justice, both in principle and practice.
"The Congress is a party committed to social justice. This ideological commitment has been demonstrated not merely through words but through action," the CM said in a statement, underlining that the party has consistently translated its philosophy into governance.
He said his recent article marking Social Justice Day has sparked debate.
Defending the piece, he said: "An article I wrote for a newspaper as part of Social Justice Day celebrations has sparked multifaceted debate in the state’s political circles. If water remains stagnant, it turns into slush; if it flows, it becomes clearer."
"The social system is similar—if it does not remain rigid and instead becomes dynamic, it transforms in a people-centric manner. From this perspective, I welcome the discussion surrounding my article," he added.
Stating that his commitment to social justice is longstanding, the CM said, "Whether in power or out of it, my stand in favour of social justice has remained unwavering. I have greater clarity about the caste system among us than the politicians criticising me."
"I am prepared for a public debate on this issue," Siddaramaiah added.
Responding to criticism from Union Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader H D Kumaraswamy, he said, "I have taken his allegation—that I have ‘dragged caste into the picture for the sake of a chair’—lightly."
Launching a sharp attack on JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and his family, Siddaramaiah added, "Kumaraswamy and his revered father Deve Gowda are certainly not casteists; they are against their own caste. More importantly, they are family-centric. For them, caste is merely a vote bank."
He alleged that past, present, and future top JD(S) leaders would always be members of the Gowda family, questioning how many Vokkaliga leaders the party had nurtured during Deve Gowda’s long political career.
The CM maintained that it was the Congress that had identified and politically groomed Vokkaliga leaders.
"From Kengal Hanumanthaiah to S M Krishna, hundreds of Vokkaliga leaders have been nurtured. If Kengal Hanumanthaiah, Kadidal Manjappa, and S M Krishna became chief ministers, it was because of the Congress," he said, adding that several prominent Vokkaliga leaders are currently in the party.
"If one day anyone other than a member of Deve Gowda’s family becomes chief minister, it will be through the Congress," he noted.
Highlighting inclusivity, Siddaramaiah said the Congress has enabled leaders from Vokkaliga, Lingayat, and backward communities to become chief ministers in Karnataka, and expressed gratitude to party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi for giving him a second term.
He added that leaders from the Dalit community who rise to the CM's post do so on merit, not merely caste. "I can confidently say that if someone from the Dalit community becomes chief minister in the future, it will be possible only through the Congress,” he reiterated.
He questioned whether the JD(S) or the BJP in the state is capable of fostering such aspirations. "This is the difference between the Congress, the BJP and JD(S). Therefore, I urge those accusing me of practising caste politics to introspect," the CM said.
