IND vs ENG: Earlier My Idol Was Sachin Tendulkar, Now It's Virat Kohli - Dhruv Jurel

Young wicket-keeper batsman Dhruv Jurel received a maiden India call-up and has been picked for the five-match Test series against England. Jurel earned a place in the Indian Test squad based on his consistent performance in first-class cricket and the Indian Premier League.

Jurel came into the limelight during IPL 2023 when he played some quick-fire knocks by coming down the order and caught the attention of the fans and cricket experts.

Dhruv Jurel recently had a chat with Star Sports and opened up about his idols. Jurel revealed that he keeps changing his inspirations and stated that Virat Kohli is his current idol. Dhruv Jurel said during the conversation, “Earlier it was Sachin Tendulkar, I keep changing my idols, now my idol is Virat Kohli, everyone knows about him.”

Dhruv Jurel opens up on his cricketing idol post-Indian team selection

In this candid interview, #TeamIndia's latest member #DhruvJurel opens up about his Dad's contribution, discovering cricket while swimming and why he looks up to @imVkohli!

All the best, Dhruv!#Cricket pic.twitter.com/GHm7rZNSQd

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 14, 2024

Dhruv Jurel was the vice-captain of the Indian U19 team during the 2020 World Cup which was played in South Africa. India reached the final of the tournament but lost against Bangladesh. Jurel has also played 15 first-class matches for Uttar Pradesh and has scored 790 runs at an average of 46.47. He has scored one hundred and five half-centuries and his highest score has been 249.

Apart from his wonderful performance in the domestic circuit, Dhruv Jurel has been with the IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals since 2022 but played his first match in 2023. Jurel played a total of 13 matches in the last edition of the cash-rich league and scored 152 runs at a strike rate of 172.73.

Now, when India are looking for wicket-keeper batsman options then Dhruv Jurel can prove to be a good choice. If Jurel gets a chance in the Test series against England, he will be playing against experienced players such as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul. Rahul would not be India’s first-choice wicket-keeper option after his magnificent batting performance in the Test series against South Africa.

The IND vs ENG Test series is all set to start on January 25 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. The five-match series will go on until March 7, when England will arrive in India after a camp in Abu Dhabi three days before the start of the series.

This will be the first time when the duo of captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum will tour India. Under Stokes and McCullum, England have performed significantly well in the Test format and have not lost a single Test series.

England have been playing the red ball format with a more aggressive and attacking style since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes have taken over the Test team. England’s ‘bazball’ tactics which have certainly made the Test matches interesting to watch have given great results to the team in the past series.

However, the main question that will arise ahead of England’s India tour, will the ‘bazball’ tactics work in India. England faced a disappointing loss against India when they last played here in the Test series by 3-1 in 2021. It will be very challenging for India to play the four Indian spinners.