Dhruv Jurel raised his bats and jumped in the air as he ran the winning runs in the fourth test in the India Vs England test series, at Ranchi.
Jurel’s partner Shubman Gill roared in joy, as the duo took Team India home and now wrap up the series 3- 1 in Ranchi.
No one perhaps deserved to hit the winning run more than Jurel, whose 90 and 39 not out were the most invaluable contributions to the five-wicket win in the fourth test match.
In a team without stalwarts such as Virat Kohli and Mohammed Shami, Team India found themselves at a precarious 120 for 5 after lunch. Shubhman Gill and Dhruv Jurel however held their nerve and steered India past the goalpost.
England tested India harder than most other teams that had landed in the country to beat the hosts at home.
Australia had come the closest, before India fought back, not many will forget the iconic 2001 Test series, when Steve Waugh’s men came down.
India was going smoothly until Yashasvi Jaiswal got sent back, before the drinks break in the first session. James Anderson belied his 41 years as he took a plunging catch, off Jaiswal’s bat, to give England the first breakthrough of the morning.
India were 84 ahead at Jaiswal’s departure.
Captain Rohit Sharma did not stay for long and Test cricket tested Rajat Patidar’s technique, particularly in dealing with the spinning ball. It was up to Ravindra Jadeja and Shubman Gill to keep India stable.
England looked like the were in with a slight chance now.
But for a guy called Dhruv Jurel.
Dhruv Jurel looked to be playing on a different pitch and he became one of the biggest reasons behind the win.
With the cracks widening up along with India’s tail-end, Dhruv Jurel carved out a mature knock of 39.
Jurel had a big hand in the first innings of the match as well, reducing India’s deficit from 134, at the start of Day 3, to only 46 runs.
England looked certain to grab a big lead after Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir sent the India top order back on Saturday.
Jurel and India No. 9 Kuldeep Yadav put on 76 runs and then the wicketkeeper-batter changed gears to complete his maiden fifty and later charged towards the big triple-figure score.
While he fell short at 90, the innings earned him the highest-ever praise from former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who drew local boy and fellow legend MS Dhoni comparisons.
Gavaskar was immensely impressed with Jurel’s wicketkeeping as well, which led to the India batting great to reckon that the youngster ‘is another MS Dhoni in the making.’
‘Of course he has batted well, but his keeping, his work behind the stumps has been equally brilliant. Just by looking at his game awareness, I want to say that he is another MS Dhoni in the making. I know there can never be another MSD but you know the presence of mind that he has, MSD also when he started, it was that. And Jurel has that game awareness. Street-smart cricketer,’ Gavaskar said.
After India closed out Day 3 with a big smile on their faces, Jurel responded to Gavaskar’s lofty words. Jurel said there were no specific instruction given by the team management on how to approach the play.
He said: ‘Obviously it’s a good feeling to hear a legend like Sunil Gavaskar talk about me. The mood was great, there were no specific instructions… just to go out and play. Watch the ball and play. Just that the long I play the better it is.’
Jurel’s knock did deserve a century, but he admitted that there were no regrets on missing the big score.
‘I don’t regret a bit on missing the hundred. It’s my debut Test series, I’m just desperate to lift this trophy in my hands. It’s always a childhood dream to play for India in Tests,’ he added.
India Vs England scores
England: 353 and 145
India: 307 and 192/5 in 61 overs (Rohit Sharma 55, Shubman Gill 52 not out, Dhruv Jurel 39 not out, Yashasvi Jaiswal 37; Shoaib Bashir 3/79).
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