IND vs BAN: Dhruv Jurel reveals how Rohit Sharma's candid pep-talk settled his nerves before Test debut

The 23-year-old India National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batsman Dhruv Jurel has made a revelation on how the skipper Rohit Sharma calmed him down before his Test debut against England on February 15, 2024, in Rajkot.

Jurel came in the India playing XI as a replacement for struggling KS Bharat and he did a great job in his maiden outing, scoring 46 runs. Overall, he has scored 190 runs for India in 3 Test matches at an average of 63.33. Behind the stumps, he has taken 5 catches and has inflicted 2 stumpings.

The best performance of Dhruv Jurel with the bat came in the Ranchi Test against the Three Lions as he bailed his team out of trouble and slammed a sensational 90 runs in the first innings before scoring 39 runs in the next innings.

Although Dhruv Jurel has been extremely impressive in Test cricket, he is likely to lose his place in the upcoming Bangladesh Tests to the star wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant.

Meanwhile, Dhruv Jurel recently opened up about being nervous ahead of his Test debut in an interaction with Jatin Sapru on his official YouTube channel.

Also Read: IND vs BAN: Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma's Indian successors announced by Piyush Chawla

I had eye contact with Rohit bhaiya on many occasions, but I couldn't muster the courage to talk to him - Dhruv Jurel

Speaking in the video, Dhruv Jurel revealed that he wasn't courageous enough to speak to Rohit Sharma during their first meeting, and the Indian captain himself called him for a chat.

Jurel added that Rohit gave him a pep-talk, saying that he belongs to the big stage, and advised him to play his shots with full confidence.

“I had eye contact with Rohit bhaiya on many occasions, but I couldn't muster the courage to talk to him. Then, he casually called me, 'idhar aa! (come here!)'. Then he said, 'Kya ho gaya? Sab badhiya? Tere me dum hai isliye tu aaya hai, tere me potential hai.

"Aaram se reh, bindaas. Pehli ball maarni hai, maar. Bas 100 percent sure hoke maariyo' (What's wrong, all good? You deserve your place in this team. Don't get overwhelmed. If you want to hit the first ball for a six, do that. Just be 100 percent sure on your shot). That was the conversation. And that was when I hadn't even made my debut,” Jurel recalled.

While speaking about the difference between the UP and Team India dressing rooms, Dhruv Jurel said:

“Songs keep playing in the dressing room. It was completely new for me, because state dressing rooms don't have that environment. It's quite strict there."

Dhruv Jurel further recalled how Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer approached him after he was hit by a delivery from Raghu, a throwdown specialist, in the nets.

"I was in the nets facing Raghu bhai, and I hit him for a very good drive. The very next ball, he gave me a scorching bouncer on the shoulder. Then, Axar and Iyer came to shake my hand. I was surprised that why are they shaking hands with me. They just said, ‘welcome to Indian cricket!’,” said Dhruv Jurel.