Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Shreevats Goswami has reckoned that Devdutt Padikkal emerged as India’s No.3 in the longest format of the game after his exceptional performances on the recent Sri Lankan Test tour.
On the Lankan tour, Padikkal shone with the bat, scoring 328 runs at an average of 109.33, including two centuries as India secured a 1-0 Test series win. Speaking on the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast, Goswami warned the Indian batters of a tough tour of New Zealand.
“India’s domestic circuit is so strong that the players keep coming. India was looking for a solid No.3 in Tests, and Devdutt Padikkal seems to be the answer to that. He is going to solve a lot of problems for India,” Goswami said on the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast.
“The New Zealand series will be the biggest challenge for Gautam Gambhir as coach. It will also be the biggest challenge for all the Indian batters, who struggled even at home against spin. Now, they’ll be up against seamers in seaming conditions with three slips and a gully and 80 overs of fast bowling,” he added.
Further, the former keeper-batter asserted that India’s Test batting saw a major dip after the talismanic batter Virat Kohli’s retirement from the longest format of the game. Notably, Kohli retired from Tests in 2025 after a poor red-ball tour of Australia Down Under.
“Virat Kohli should have played Test cricket for another four to five years. The kind of cricket, attitude, and fitness he has, he retired way too early. He had so much left and is like an ambassador for Test cricket. Overall, India’s batting has dipped as there is so much focus on T20s. So things like defence, the art of leaving the ball, and patience have gone down a notch,” he concluded.
