Iyer, Padikkal fall cheaply in their first Duleep Trophy 2024 outing

Shreyas Iyer’s return to competitive red-ball cricket wasn’t a fruitful one as the right-handed batter got out for just 9 against India C in the first round of the Duleep Trophy 2024. 

Meanwhile, Devdutt Padikkal, who made his Test debut against England earlier this year, was dismissed for a duck. Both batters got out to Vijaykumar Vyshak in the same over. 

Asked to bat first on a pacy Anantapur surface on September 5 (Thursday), India D lost their opener, Atharva Taide, in the very first over. The first wicket went to Haryana’s Anshul Kamboj before Karnataka’s Vyshak took over.

The right-arm seamer dropped one on a good length just outside off, and Iyer made the mistake of poking at a delivery that hardly moved an inch. The right-hander got an outside edge, and wicketkeeper Abishek Porel completed a regulation catch. 

Earlier, he had a poor outing against TNCA XI in the Buchi Babu tournament as well, where he was dismissed for just 2 in the first innings, but in the second innings, he got off to a good start before a short ball again led to his downfall. 

Coming out to bat at No. 4, Padikkal got one right under his bat but slammed it straight to Ruturaj Gaikwad at wide mid-off. Yash Dubey then became Kamboj’s second victim as India D were reduced to 23/4 inside seven overs.

Coming back to Iyer, the 29-year-old scored a century on Test debut against New Zealand in 2021. However, recurring back injuries kept the Mumbaikar in and out of the Indian team. He also lost his central contract for a while but bounced back by leading Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the title in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. 

On the other hand, Padikkal made his Test debut in the final Test against England. The left-handed batter scored 65 runs, but with all the main players back, it’s highly doubtful Padikkal will be picked for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh, starting on September 19.

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