Former Indian chairman of selectors and commentator Kris Srikkanth has opened up and shared his views on the Devdutt Padikkal vs Sai Sudharsan debate for the No.3 spot in the longest format of the game.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Srikkanth dismissed the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir’s past comments backing Sudharsan at No.3 for an extended period. However, he has been ruled out of the Sri Lankan tour due to an injury.
Meanwhile, Padikkal replaced Sudharsan at No.3 in the ongoing Sri Lankan series. He went on to score 211 runs in the first Test across both innings. Moreover, he continued his heroics with a 117-run knock in the first innings of the second Test.
“Gambhir has no work. How can you replace Padikkal going forward with the 200+ runs he has scored in the first Test? Gambhir just says something, and anyway he has no work in the Sri Lankan series because Sri Lanka is a bad side and India will surely win. He’ll jump after winning against sides like Sri Lanka and Afghanistan,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
“I am not trying to be harsh on Gambhir. He was a good player and is a good reader of the game. But he can be a bit more communicative. He was very effective as a player, though,” he added.
On the other hand, Srikkanth urged the Indian team management, headed by Gambhir, to play the veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja in ODIs, after his heroics in the first Test against Sri Lanka. For the unversed, Jadeja is currently out of the Indian ODI squad.
“He should come back to the ODI side. He is still one of the best fielders and left-arm spinners in the world. Even as an all-rounder, he’s among the best in the world,” Srikkanth concluded.
