“It’s a Bradman-esque average” - Irfan Pathan feels young batter deserves a spot in India’s ODI squad

Former Indian all-rounder and commentator Irfan Pathan believes Karnataka top-order batter Devdutt Padikkal deserves a spot in the Indian ODI squad for the forthcoming series against New Zealand, starting on Sunday, January 11, in Vadodara.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Irfan asserted that Padikkal has a Bradman-esque average in List A cricket at 83. However, he felt that with Shreyas Iyer part of the Indian middle-order, it gets very tough for batters like Ruturaj Gaikwad and Padikkal to make it to the squad.

"Devdutt Padikkal averages 83 in List A cricket. It’s a Bradman-esque average. He has hardly failed in Vijay Hazare Trophy matches. 83 is freakingly unbelievable. But he seems to be nowhere near the ODI squad selection. It is becoming very tough because Shreyas Iyer, who is the vice-captain, returned and will take back the No.4 spot and Gaikwad has to make way,” Irfan Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

“There are still 22 months to go for the 2027 World Cup but there are no ODIs for the next eight months. India is already thinking of it but is also contemplating workload management for some players. Hence, Jasprit Bumrah is not present currently and Hardik Pandya is not fit to bowl 10 overs presently, so he is not there either,” he added.

Furthermore, Pathan also talked about Rishabh Pant’s selection as the backup keeper to KL Rahul. While Pant is a match-winner in the longest format of the game, he is yet to prove his worth in the limited-over formats.

"Rishabh Pant hasn’t played an ODI in a year. He last played in 2024 and didn’t feature in one in 2025. Pant’s performances in ODIs have been under the scanner but he is a match-winner in Test cricket. He must translate his Test performances in ODIs and T20Is. This selection must be looked at keeping in mind the 50-over World Cup. So, I’m not surprised seeing Pant in this squad. He will finish in Test cricket as one of the greats and the selectors have given him a push in white-ball cricket, keeping that in mind,” he noted.

"But it remains to be seen whether he gets a chance in the playing XI and how long a rope he gets. It’s just a three-match series. Pant bats in the middle-order in ODIs and I would like to see him open in T20Is. He can be a match-winner in ODIs too but he must make the most of the opportunities,” he concluded.

India’s ODI squad for the New Zealand series:

Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Shreyas Iyer (vc)*, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, and Yashasvi Jaiswal. 

*subject to fitness clearance.

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