“I think that innings was the defining part of this Test match,” Rahul said of Padikkal’s 167 at his post-match press conference. “The way he batted, the tempo that he batted with, and to go on and get a big hundred in the first innings really set up the game for us.
“The conditions were really hot and it was challenging physically as well, so for him to get through that, and firstly to get his first [Test] hundred is a special moment, but to go on from there and get a big hundred and stitch partnerships with different players and get a big first-innings total really set up this Test match, so that was really pleasing.
“And someone who I have played a lot of cricket with, and seen him grow up and come from Bangalore and play for Karnataka as well, was really happy to be there and to witness his first hundred, and hopefully he carries this confidence into the next game and into his Test career as well.”
Rahul was highly impressed by Suthar’s spin-bowling skillset as well.
“I think from all the times we’ve played him in the nets, it’s the subtle variations,” Rahul said. “With the same action, from the same angle, without changing his arm speed, he’s able to bowl slower, and with the same arm speed he’s able to bowl quicker as well.
“Just very, very subtle variations, and his [use of] angles. Here in Galle as well, where there was breeze blowing from one side, he used that drift really well, and from there the ball straightens or comes in. That’s something that he’s always done, even for India A in the last two-three years. When I had gone to Australia [with the India A team in 2024-25], I had played with him there as well, and that’s something he’s been really good at.
“And he’s very consistent. From one spot, just using subtle variations, he’s able to do that through the day. And batsmen will also begin to think, if he’s not moving [from that spot], I’ll need to do something. When you get a batter in that sort of mindset, you’re beginning to win that contest. He’s been able to do that in the two Test matches he’s played, and hopefully he’ll just keep getting better and better.
“But I think the greatest thing about him is the pace that he bowls at and his consistency to always challenge all modes of dismissal, because the line he bowls, he can get lbws as well, and if it turns a little he can get you bowled or caught behind as well. That’s a special skill he possesses, and I hope he keeps getting better.”
Rahul credited regular India A tours – particularly shadow tours in the lead-up to away Test series – for the manner in which young players like Padikkal and Suthar have embraced Test cricket.
“I think a lot of credit goes to how our first-class set-up is done, and how some of these guys are in the India A structure that’s been there for at least the last few years,” Rahul said. “The teams are touring to countries that we’re going to play [Test series in] in a couple of months, so Devdutt was here a month or six weeks before the Test series and played a couple of games, then we played a practice game here, so [he] got used to those conditions.
“So yeah, once you put players in those positions and give them the exposure and the experience that they need at that level, I feel like that really helps them understand what they need to do when they come into the national team, and they’re better prepared and give themselves a better chance to do well at this level.
“It’s not like you go from playing Ranji Trophy cricket straight into an Indian team and playing a Test match in a couple of months’ time, where that difference is huge – the standard from there to here, it’s a big jump, so then sometimes players are found wanting, and they need to figure out their game at international level, when there’s already so much pressure that comes hard sometimes. But because of the way Indian cricket is structured and first-class cricket is structured, I feel like they go from first-class, Ranji Trophy, to playing a lot of India A games and they’ve been to Australia, Sri Lanka, England, all of these places, so it helps them get better at their game and understand their game, and by the time they’ve got their Test cap they’re well aware of their own game and the expectations of playing international cricket and what they can do to do well here.
“Obviously they’re all special players, they’ve done well for their states and scored runs or taken a lot of wickets. They’re special players that have a lot of skill, but helping them with giving them the right opportunities and sending them to the right places to play cricket and test their own game gets them ready for international cricket. That’s what’s helped the Indian team in the last few years.”
