IPL 2021 | 'He showed a lot of maturity': Kumar Sangakkara lauds 'exceptional' Devdutt Padikkal
RCB's Devdutt Padikkal slammed the second century of the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League, remaining unbeaten on 101 off just 52 deliveries as the side chased a 178-run target without losing a wicket against Rajasthan Royals.
Padikkal's opening partner, skipper Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 72 off 47 deliveries.
RR's Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara opened up on the game in the post-match press conference, lauding the youngster Padikkal for his maturity throughout the innings.
"I thought it was an exceptional innings. He played really, really well. He played the shots that he knew he could play and he kind of anticipated some of the deliveries that were going to be bowled with the fields set. I thought he showed a lot of maturity to bat through," said Sangakkara in a virtual press conference.
"Of course, he was batting with Virat so you know there's a lot of conversation out there, talking about what to do and how to do it. And it was an exceptional innings; very, very impressive," he added.
Talking about his team, Sangakkara said that the bowlers need to execute the plans better, adding that the team needs to adapt to situations quickly.
"In terms of our bowling to have slightly better defensive options to try and anticipate and read the game a little bit better to what the batsman might do," said Sangakkara.
"So we got to kind of change our thinking a little bit on that and have a little more tactical nous when it comes to executing the game plan. But it's about playing good hard positive cricket, enjoying yourself and really expressing yourself, that's the mantra here.
"We gotta get better really quickly. It's only been four games, but you know, games can go by quite quickly so we've got a lot of thinking to do. First recover quickly and then get back to play some good cricket that we know we can," he added.
