Fifth Test between India and England: Sarfaraz Khan and Devdutt Padikkal stand, offering a glimpse at India’s future

DHARAMSHALA: India should be pleased with how the formidable Sarfaraz Khan and the composed Devdutt Padikkal steered the ship during this day’s middle session. The 14,800 people who came to see the play that day will have returned knowing that Test cricket’s future is well-managed.
The encouraging thing about this series victory is that India’s Test batting lineup’s Gen Next has been steadily improving.

They have shown steely determination at different points over these five Tests, which belies their little experience to this extent.
Padikkal and Sarfaraz cautiously made their way onto the main platform on Friday before making an impression. Any expectations England’s bowlers may have had against India’s middle-order were dashed by their 97-run stand.
Batsman in blazing hit form

The fact that both have succeeded despite the hardships and the grind of domestic cricket—from the Ranji Trophy to the India “A” team to the Test ranks—testifies to the strength of India’s feeder system for the longer format and current selection decisions.
Despite their obvious anxieties, the two carried themselves with flair and energy. Padikkal was a streaky but exquisite player, showing the deft timing and languorous elegance of prolific left-handers in his off-side play.
Already becoming a cult figure, Sarfaraz was at times brash and gregarious, showing good defense, an acute sense of when to rotate strikes, and a brazen but novel approach to spin bowling.

Sarfaraz accomplished a significant feat by demonstrating his ability to compete against true speed, at least on home surfaces. Mark Wood showed a man with guts for the battle with his ramp shot and heroic save. Sarfaraz’s demeanor is so effortlessly charming that it fits well with red-ball cricket.
Padikkal would say only that “batting with Sarfaraz is always fun.” He is a delightful person to be around. We were simply making sure we were comfortable with one other, not actually talking about the game at all. Since it’s two versus eleven, we basically attempted to make ourselves comfortable.
With three hundreds at a strike rate of 76.9 and an average of 92.66 from six innings in this season’s Ranji Trophy, Padikkal is already a formidable force in Karnataka cricket. He claimed to have used “discipline” to get over stomach issues and a Covid infection, despite playing the fewest games of any of his colleagues and scoring the most runs (566) throughout the campaign.
The day wasn’t flawless, however. Padikkal suffered the consequences of sticking with the spinners, while Sarfaraz lost focus. If this teaches us anything, it’s that even for players who are in form, Test cricket can be really harsh. Still, the first indications are encouraging.