Bold Diaries: The Devdutt Padikkal interview

Devdutt Padikkal entered the IPL 2020 season in sublime form, finished as the tournament's emerging player. The breakout star continued his purple patch for Karnataka in the Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare trophies, respectively. 

The 21-year-old got infected with COVID-19 on March 22 in Bengaluru and has since recovered. During an interview segment on RCB Bold Diaries, the Karnataka opener stated that he is completely prepared for the challenges ahead of him.

“Right now I am completely fine, most importantly I am able to move around well, I am able to react to balls and that’s the most important part. In IPL, you always have to be ready, you always have to be 100 per cent in every situation. Unless you are 100 per cent, you can’t really push yourself,” he said on Bold Diaries.

On his road to IPL 2021

“Last IPL was amazing for me. It was such a great experience and exposure for me, the opportunities I got and the fact that I was able to contribute to the side is all that matters in the end. Mushtaq Ali was decent, not up to what I was expecting and in Vijay Hazare I was just looking to get back into my rhythm and focus on what I am doing and really improve my game every time I went out to bat. It was really great to have the runs behind me, so coming into IPL, I know that I am confident,” Padikkal said.

On sharing the dressing room with the likes of Virat, ABD and Maxwell

“Batting with them (seniors) just takes pressure off you. They are so good at what they do and they just make your job easier, know exactly what to do in every situation. So, it’s important that I just make sure I am learning as much as possible,” he said. 

Padikkal hopes for fans to return, once normalcy is restored

“It’s definitely better with the fans because the energy they bring to the ground is something unimaginable. It would have been better with the fans in the ground and hopefully sooner than later it will happen.”