IPL 2021: "Devdutt Padikkal has a few little things to iron out" - Brian Lara on RCB opener

Former West Indies cricketer Brian Lara has been impressed by RCB's opener Devdutt Padikkal. The legendary West Indies batsman termed the Karnataka opener "a great talent."

The 20-year-old had a dream IPL debut season last year where he scored 473 runs in 15 matches at an average of 31.53. Brian Lara acknowledged that Devdutt Padikkal was a great batting partner for Virat Kohli last year.

"He's (Padikkal) such a great talent. Last year, he got a couple of (5) fifties, he batted well, he supported Virat Kohli very well," Lara told Star Sports' Select Dugout Live Feed.

However, Brian Lara believes there are a few areas of Devdutt Padikkal's game where he must improve, and hopes the RCB opener fine-tuned his batting in the short break before IPL 2021.

"A few little things to iron out. I hope he did that in the break and comes back really storming hard for this IPL," Brian Lara said.

"Want to see Devdutt Padikkal get a couple of tons in IPL 2021" - Brian Lara

Devdutt Padikkal, who recently recovered from Covid-19, had a remarkable run in the recently-concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. He was the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament, with 737 runs in 7 matches at an average of 147.40 and a strike rate of 95.96. He registered four centuries in the tournament.

Brian Lara hopes that Devdutt Padikkal emulates similar performances in the IPL 2021 and manages to score a couple of centuries in the prestigious tournament.

"What I want to see in 2021 IPL is for him to go on and get a few man of the matches and get a couple of triple figures under his belt. Such a great little player," Lara added.

Devdutt Padikkal missed RCB's first game this season against the Mumbai Indians as he was still recovering from the after-effects of Covid-19. He made a comeback into the side for the game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) but was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar Kumar for just 11 runs.