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Devdutt Padikkal Breaks Silence on Leading India A Against Australia A, Says Captaincy ‘Helps My Batting Even Further’
After impressing as Karnataka’s Ranji Trophy captain, Devdutt Padikkal is ready for his first assignment as India A skipper against Australia A, calling the opportunity another important step in his leadership journey.
Devdutt Padikkal is preparing to embrace a new challenge in his career as he gets ready to captain India A for the first time in the upcoming four-day matches against Australia A in Puducherry.
The left-handed batter enters the assignment with valuable leadership experience behind him, having taken charge of Karnataka during the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season.
For Padikkal, however, captaincy is not simply about having an additional title next to his name. The batter believes the responsibility can actually bring the best out of his own game.
‘It’s a great opportunity’
Speaking after the 2026 Duleep Trophy, Padikkal expressed his excitement about getting the opportunity to lead India A.
“Definitely, it’s a great opportunity to be the captain of India A side,” Padikkal said.
The 26-year-old added that his first season leading Karnataka taught him plenty about captaincy and he now wants to carry those lessons into the India A setup.
“I think leadership is something that I really enjoy doing, especially starting off with Karnataka last year. It was a great learning curve for me, so I’m really looking forward to carrying that experience to India A set-up as well,” he said.
Why captaincy could actually help Padikkal’s batting
Leadership can sometimes add pressure to a player’s individual performances, but Padikkal sees things differently.
For him, captaincy simply strengthens a mindset he has always carried onto the field — helping his team win.
“Captaincy is just an added responsibility to go out there and make sure that I’m helping the side. I’ve always played cricket that way,” he explained.
“As a captain, that’s your sole focus. You want to make the team win. That just helps my batting even further,” Padikkal added.
His numbers as Karnataka captain offer evidence that responsibility has not negatively affected his batting.
During the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy, Padikkal produced a memorable fourth-innings performance against Punjab in Mohali, smashing an unbeaten 120 off just 85 deliveries as Karnataka successfully chased a target of 250 in only 28 overs.
He followed it with an even bigger innings in the semi-final against Uttarakhand in Lucknow, scoring a career-best 232 at No. 3 and earning the Player of the Match award.
Those performances demonstrated Padikkal’s ability to combine the demands of captaincy with the responsibility of being one of his team’s leading batters.
Sai Sudharsan’s return increases competition
Padikkal’s India A assignment also comes at a time when competition for batting positions remains fierce.
Sai Sudharsan, who was replaced by Padikkal for India’s two-Test series in Sri Lanka, has regained fitness and returned to the India A squad for the two matches against Australia A.
But Padikkal is not allowing the battle for places to distract him from what he can control.
“I think there’s always been tough competition for spots in Indian cricket,” he said.
According to Padikkal, such competition is unlikely to disappear given the depth of talent available in the country.
“It’s important that we don’t focus too much on that and just continue to enjoy my batting. As long as I’m scoring runs, I’m happy,” he added.
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Padikkal highlights strength of India’s domestic cricket
The left-hander also spoke about the quality and difficulty of India’s domestic cricket system, stressing that players must work extremely hard to distinguish themselves.
“It takes a lot of hard work to go through the domestic grind. There’s a lot of high-quality cricket going on in the domestic circuit,” Padikkal said.
He specifically pointed towards the Duleep Trophy as an example of the depth available in Indian cricket.
“I think it’s not always noticed, but you can see that. Especially when you look at Duleep Trophy, the amount of quality that is there and the talent that is there,” he added.
Australia A series another big test for Padikkal
The upcoming matches against Australia A could therefore be important on two fronts for Padikkal.
First, they give him another opportunity to strengthen his case as a batter amid intense competition for places in India’s senior red-ball setup. Second, they allow the Karnataka star to demonstrate how effectively he can manage a talented India A side against high-quality opposition.
His success as Karnataka captain has already provided a strong foundation. Now, leading India A against Australia A represents the next step.
And if Padikkal’s own assessment is anything to go by, the extra responsibility may not weigh down his batting — it could make him even better.
