Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan can easily replace Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer claims former Indian World-Cup winner

Former Indian all-rounder Madan Lal who also served as the national team coach on a 1-year contract from 1996-1997, provided his honest opinion on the emergence of Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan. In an exclusive chat with Times of India, Madan Lal expressed his happiness in seeing players like them come up and increase the bench strength.

In that interview, he was mainly talking about the BCCI Centrally contracted players and why Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were entirely left out. He also happened to support the apex board’s decision to strictly inform players to play the Ranji Trophy if they’re in full fitness. And it was then that he mentioned Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan as prime examples of players who are willing to capitalize on the opportunities that come their way.

Inside BCCI’s decision to remove Ishan and Shreyas from central contract list

When the BCCI took to X (formerly Twitter) and informed us that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan had been left out of their central contract list, a lot of us were shell-shocked. But then there was another lot of people who knew that it was bound to happen. BCCI’s constant ask for fit and contracted players to feature in domestic cricket and Ishan and Iyer’s constant denial are why the duo was left out.

It’s almost as if Ishan Kishan dug up his graveyard when he asked for a mental health break to leave the South Africa tour and head over to Dubai. Since then, the left-hand batter has snubbed the Ranji Trophy for Jharkhand and has trained separately to prepare for the IPL.

Shreyas Iyer on the other hand was first dropped from the Indian team after a string of low scores in the Tests in South Africa and the first two Tests against England. After getting dropped for the next 3 Tests, Iyer too was reluctant to play domestic red-ball cricket. But days before knowing that he had been axed from the player retainership, Iyer made himself available for Mumbai’s semi-final clash against Tamil Nadu.

Ishan and Iyer’s absence coupled with KL Rahul and Virat Kohli’s absences, paved the way for Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan to make their marks. Both of them impressed in their first two Test matches in the 3rd and 4th Tests against England. And if they play the 5th Test in Dharamshala, they’ll be included in Grade C of the central contract.

Madan Lal emphasizes discipline and hails Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan

Madan Lal thinks that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have done well for India but claims it is good that there are players like Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan who are making sure they make their marks right away.

“It is true that players like Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel are coming. But Kishan and Shreyas here have done well. It’s not that they are without the performances. But the good thing is that we have the bench strength to replace them. And it’s very, very important to have team B as well as discipline within the team if we want to produce a better result.” – Madan Lal said via Times of India.