IPL 2022: Devdutt Padikkal beats Dhoni, Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma to achieve huge batting milestone in RR vs KKR game

Rajasthan Royals had recently bought Padikkal for ₹7.75 crore following a bidding war with Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians.

Rajasthan Royals batter Devdutt Padikkal entered the 1000-run IPL club with a boundary against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Brabourne Stadium on Monday. The left-handed opener flicked a Shivam Mavi delivery through the mid-wicket for a comfortable four, reaching the four-digit number in style. (IPL 2022, RR vs KKR Live Score)

Rohit Sharma (L), Devdutt Padikkal (M) and MS Dhoni (IPLt20.com)

During the previous season in Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) colours, Padikkal had notched up 101 off just 52 deliveries, which was the fastest century in the IPL by an uncapped player. He ended the season with 411 runs at an average of 31.61 before Rajasthan Royals snapped him in the February auction. Royals snapped him up for ₹7.75 crore following a bidding war with Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians.

Padikkal is the joint third-fastest Indian to reach the 1000-run mark in the lucrative T20 league. He achieved the milestone in just 35 innings to equal Rishabh Pant's record. Sachin Tendulkar (31 innings) and Suresh Raina (34 innings) are the top two names on the panel.

Fastest Indian players to 1000 IPL runs

31 Innings - Sachin Tendulkar

34 Innings - Suresh Raina

35 Innings - Rishabh Pant

35 Innings - Devdutt Padikkal*

36 Innings - Gautam Gambhir

37 Innings - Rohit Sharma

37 Innings - MS Dhoni

The top-order Karnataka batter is yet to click in Rajasthan colours. He had conjured 41 in his side's opening game against Sunrisers and it remains his highest score of the tournament so far.

Against Kolkata, Padikkal played the perfect second fiddle as Jos Buttler blazed away to his half-century off 29 balls. The pair put up 60 runs in the powerplay to steer Rajasthan to a brisk start. The partnership was eventually broken by Sunil Narine, who castled Padikkal (24) in the 10th over.

Earlier, the Royals made three changes, bringing in fast bowlers Obed McCoy and Trent Boult alongside Indian batter Karun Nair.

"The wicket looks amazing and hard. One side seems short and one is long, so that's another reason why we want to chase. It's something we thrive on. We just practise a lot in the nets, we've seen the videos and have had chats in the meetings. Important to execute what we've discussed in the meetings," said Sanju Samson at the toss.