New Delhi, Aug. 16 -- India batter Devdutt Padikkal made the best use of his opportunity on day one of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle on Saturday. Padikkal, playing his first Test since November 2024, slammed an unbeaten 131 to take India to 288/2 at stumps on Saturday.

The Karnataka batter might not have featured for India if Sai Sudharsan was fit. However, a toe injury for the Tamil Nadu batter opened the doors for Padikkal to make his return to the India Test playing XI.

After the day's play on Saturday, Padikkal spoke on the challenging conditions in Galle and explained how determined he was.

"In this knock, determination for me was playing through that tiredness and fatigue that I was feeling, especially towards the thi...