VHT 2021: Devdutt Padikkal slams fourth consecutive century

Devdutt Padikkal on Monday continued his spectacular run of form, scoring his fourth consecutive century of the 2021 Vijay Hazare Trophy. Batting first, Padikkal and R Samarth yet again stitched a double century opening stand. The mammoth opening stand laid the perfect foundation for Karnataka's 338 for 3, a target that proved too big a task for Kerala at the end of the day. While the Karnataka skipper went hammer and tongs quite early in the innings, the southpaw took his time to get his eye in. He mixed caution with aggression during his 119-ball stay at the crease, which included 10 boundaries and two sixes.

Samarth, on the other hand, yet again put up an inspiring show at the Palam Grounds, mustering 192 runs in just 158 balls. Karnataka inched closer to title defence with an 80-run victory over Kerala in the second quarterfinal fixture. 

With that record-breaking century, the 20-year-old joined the elite list of batsmen who have scored the most consecutive centuries in List-A cricket. The other prominent names in the list include Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, West Indies' Brian Lara and Australia's Michael Hussey. 

With scores of - 97, 152,126*,145*, 101 - in his last five outings for Karnataka, it is safe to say that the youngster has done everything possible to put his name In the reckoning for a spot in the senior Indian squad.