Devdutt Padikkal breaks silence on being ruthlessly ignored by Ajit Agarkar despite VHT masterclass

RCB batter Devdutt Padikkal has literally lit up the Vijay Hazare Trophy this season as he crossed the 600-run mark in the competition for the third time in his career. Despite his efforts, the left-handed middle-order batter has been ignored by India's Selection committee for the upcoming ODIs against New Zealand.

Royal Challengers Bangalore batter Devdutt Padikkal has been in red-hot form in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. One-day cricket has been the format where the batter has excelled the most, and he has proven it time and again.

In the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, he has amassed 600 runs and has set a record to be the first cricketer to have crossed the milestone figure thrice in his career. Padikkal also has 5 50+ scores in his last 6 innings in the VHT, of which four are massive hundreds, and one is a fifty, where he missed on a fifth century by a jiffy.

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"I wouldn't say it was disappointing," Devdutt Padikkal said about the Indian team snub

On being snubbed from the selections for the Indian cricket team despite his stellar form in the domestic One-day tournament, Devdutt Padikkal has looked calm and unaffected. He is not bothered by the snub as he reckons that the team is already lined up with several splendid players.

"I wouldn't say it was disappointing," Padikkal told The Indian Express. "Yes, I was looking at the selection and seeing what would come out. But at the same time, I understood that there are so many batters in the line and everyone has been doing really well. And it's not that easy to push into that one-day side," he considered.

The patience that he has shown in his early career is one of the essential traits needed for any professional athlete. "And again, that's something that, as cricketers, you have to make peace with. And you have to just try and do your job and keep scoring runs," he explained.

Devdutt Padikkal credits RCB coaches for his evolution into a limited-overs cricketer

Devdutt Padikkal revealed that his foundation in cricket was laid upon the orthodox routes of Test cricket; however, it was the IPL and the guidance of the coaches in RCB that transformed him into the modern-day explosive batter.

He has attributed his success largely to the coaches in the RCB management, especially Dinesh Karthik and Andy Flower from 2025.

"To be honest, the way they helped me through that phase and helped me understand how I can maximise my game in the T20 format helped me a lot in terms of understanding what I needed to do. Earlier, because I was so used to playing in the power play, I was not really thinking about playing that phase after 7-14," he continued, crediting his coaches.

Devdutt Padikkal reveals his ODI tactics amid dream Vijay Hazare Trophy form

Speaking of the One-day format, the format where he excels, Padikkal claimed that while T20s are about maximization, one-dayers are about keeping the tempo of the game and fitting into the pattern. He also claimed that he found that quite early in his career and feels that has helped him in his 50-over career.

"It's pretty straightforward for me. It's all about fighting that new ball initially and then after that, putting some pressure back on the bowler and then playing according to the situation."

"That's how it always goes pretty much, especially when you are batting first. And when you are batting second, obviously, you can adapt your game according to the score," he stated.

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