Devdutt Padikkal’s school coach and teachers on the ‘timid’ boy who became a star RCB batsman
devdutt padikkal paid an impromptu visit to his alma mater, St. Joseph’s Boys High School, on a recent Saturday, reliving the three years he spent there and reminding staff why they saw potential in him. He is now a 25-year-old captain of the Karnataka Ranji team and a star batsman for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a full-circle moment traced back to school corridors and the sports field. The visit underscored why teachers and the high school coach call him a disciplined, focused player and a role model for current students.
Devdutt Padikkal: the timid opener who scored a century
High school coach Mehboob Pasha recalled the trial that brought the then Army Public School student to St. Joseph’s in Class 8. “After a week of them requesting me during practice at the grounds, we brought him in to play for one hour. He played wonderfully and it was in this match that the other cricket team members mentioned that this was the boy who had scored a half-century in the last inter-school match they had played and given them tough competition, ” Pasha said. Pasha remembered the shy manner in which the youngster accepted the opening slot: “I asked all the boys ‘who will open?’ but none of them wanted to. And when I asked this new boy on the team, he said in a soft voice ‘Yes sir, I will’ – he went on to score a century in that match, ” smiles Pasha.
Teachers painted the same portrait of a quiet, focused adolescent. “He had few friends and was completely focussed on academics, ” said Shantha Kumar, 10th standard class teacher. Biology teacher Bindu Thomas added, “Even if students who attended class regularly hadn’t submitted their records, he would have submitted it. ” Hindi teacher Jennifer Gonsalves noted, “He was not regular to school because practice took up so much time. But the discipline in his sport made everything else fall in place. “
Teachers, milestones and the case for selection
Principal Fr. Norwin Pereira called the visit “a surprise” and said, “We’re always happy to have students of his calibre return, especially since he’s a model to emulate for our youngsters. ” History teacher Gowri Mirlay-Achanta recalled a moment from 2015 when a 15-year-old Padikkal presented a memento to Rahul Dravid during the inauguration of the school’s indoor sports facility: “Seeing Devdutt’s excitement, I thought to myself that one day he will also be in that chair receiving something big. I’m sure he still has those pictures, him looking at Dravid in awe (in pic). ” Class 8 biology teacher Lisamma Joseph laughed at the memory of his physical presence at the crease: “We felt we should wear helmets to go see those matches! When Devdutt came in, with his height, we knew he would hit sixes that would go flying over the boundary like no other player. “
The school recollections arrive as selection debates swirl for the IPL season, where RCB faces a choice between in-form Karnataka batter Devdutt Padikkal and all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer. The case for Padikkal is backed by recent domestic numbers: in the Vijay Hazare Trophy he played nine matches, scored four centuries and accumulated 725 runs at an average of 98. 24; in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy he scored 309 runs in six matches at an average of 61. 80 with one century and two half-centuries and a strike rate of 167. 02. His broader white-ball record in context lists 2, 796 List A runs in 41 innings at an average of 82. 23 with 13 centuries and 14 fifties, and 3, 362 T20 runs in 115 innings with four centuries and 21 half-centuries — form that supporters say makes him hard to bench.
What’s next for the player and his school legacy
As selectors weigh balance versus form, the memories from St. Joseph’s underline why devdutt padikkal’s school years still shape perceptions of him: a timid, disciplined youngster who rose through captaining U-14 and U-16 league wins to professional leadership. Coaches and teachers will watch the coming team announcements closely; for the school, the next developments are simple and human — current students will look to see if another quiet recruit follows the same arc. For the player, the immediate next steps are selection decisions and match opportunities that will test whether those early traits convert into sustained team success while his mentors continue to celebrate his return to the halls that first noticed him.
