Cricket fans soon took notice of Devdutt Padikkal’s light-hearted jab at KL Rahul on Instagram, where he tagged the senior India wicketkeeper-batter in a comment. A peek at the two players’ smooth chemistry off the pitch was provided by the interaction.
The senior batter and vice-captain of the Indian Test team was the target of Padikkal’s remark. Rahul’s fellow Karnataka resident Padikkal commented, “You mean inside that brain of yours? 🥴” on the latter’s post with the caption, “A little bit of nothing.”
The easygoing relationship between the two Indian cricket players is seen in Padikkal’s willingness to make fun of Rahul in a public setting. Since early 2024, the two players have had a significant on-field relationship. Padikkal replaced Rahul in the Indian Test team in February of that same year. On March 7, 2024, he made his Test debut in the fifth game of the England series, filling the void left by Rahul’s absence.
The skipper of the team selected for the two four-day matches, which will begin in Puducherry on September 22, is Devdutt Padikkal, who recently scored twin hundreds at No. 3 during India’s Test tour to Sri Lanka. The batter from Karnataka is now playing for South Zone in Chennai’s Duleep Trophy final.
The selectors have brought in a number of players from the previous domestic season, including the 2026 IPL season, as a number of first-choice players are expected to be away for India’s Asian Games campaign. The Irani Cup match between J&K and a Rest of India team chosen by the national selectors will begin on October 1 in Srinagar, coinciding with the tournament’s red-ball leg.
Since then, Padikkal has presented a compelling argument for his inclusion in the Test arrangement. He finished as India’s top run scorer in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka in 2026, amassing 328 runs at an average of more than 100. His first two Test hundreds came from the series as well. He joined that team in place of Sai Sudharsan, who was sidelined by a toe injury.
Padikkal, who was born in Edappal, Kerala, on July 7, 2000, plays domestic cricket for Karnataka and IPL for Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The most recent social media moment to showcase the laid-back, informal side of Indian cricket’s current age is his Instagram conversation with Rahul.
