The Royal Challengers Bangalore young sensation Devdutt Padikkal has taken IPL by a storm as he has managed to fill in the void of opening batsmen who performs on a consistent basis for their side.
Over the years RCB tried and tested many opening batsmen in the past but Devdutt Padikkal has managed to outdone everyone as he has notched up 422 runs in 13 matches this season which includes 4 half-centuries. Moreover, many people have also gone on to compare the left-hander to the likes of Yuvraj Singh as some believe he has shown us the glimpses of Vintage Yuvraj Singh.
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Devdutt Padikkal Bats Like Yuvraj Singh – Ventakesh Prasad
Former India seamer Ventakesh Prasad also feels the same that Devdutt Padikkal is an incoming sensation as we don’t often find left-handers in India. There was Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh but other than these two we haven’t seen the others excel as much.
“The first thing that struck me about him was that he was a left-handed batsman, which is a rare thing in India. It’s been there for a long time, but we’ve not seen very good left-hand batsmen. Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh were two of them, but otherwise, we haven’t seen too many great left-handed batsmen.
“With Padikkal being a left-hander, people will show keenness. Secondly, I was highly impressed with his fielding. As I said, fielding is all about fitness and the moment,” Venkatesh Prasad told Hindustan Times.”
He further went on to opine that Devdutt Padikkal has the bat speed of Virender Sehwag and his shots are quite similar to the ones Yuvraj Singh used to play in his twenties. In the ongoing IPL, we have witnessed Devdutt stepping out to fast, bowler, something which Yuvrah used to do quite often.
“Virender Sehwag is a great example where it was just his bat speed – like Devdutt Padikkal – and hand-eye coordination. And Sehwag was one of the highest scorers, who got two triple hundreds. A few of Padikkal’s shots were a lot like Yuvraj Singh in his 20s. Like the pull shot he plays or when he comes down the track, or when he goes after the fast bowlers. That shows a lot of confidence,” he added.