Sunil Gavaskar had recently compared young India wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel to Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The 23-year Jurel won the Player of the Match award with a starring 90-run knock in the first innings as he helped India win the fourth Test with an unbeaten 39 in Ranchi.
Gavaskar’s comparison of Jurel to Dhoni on commentary went viral in no time.
When Jurel was asked about Gavaskar’s comments, he said: “Obviously it’s a good feeling to hear a legend like Sunil Gavaskar talk about me.”
Gavaskar though was asked about his comments drawing parallels between Jurel and Dhoni, he clarified that there can never be another MSD but Jurel has shown signs of a bright future.
“The way he thinks about the game, the way he assesses the situation and bats accordingly, gives me the MS Dhoni feels. He would hit a six in between and then look for ones and twos to rotate the strike… Even in keeping, the way he gathered that wayward throw and ran out Ben Duckett and then took a brilliant catch of Jimmy Anderson who went for the reverse sweep. When MS Dhoni was of his age, he too had the same situation awareness. And that is why I said, Jurel is like MS Dhoni. No one can become MS Dhoni. There is only one MS Dhoni. But if Jurel can manage to do even some portion of the things Dhoni did then it would be great for Indian cricket,” Gavaskar was quoted as saying on Sports Tak.
Gavaskar feels Jurel, who was part of India’s U19 World Cup team in 2020 and shot into the limelight after his cameos for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL). can be an option for India for the 2024 T20 World Cup.
“He is definitely an option. A lot will depend on his IPL form. Form is very important. But the ease with which he is hitting sixes shows that he has the game for shorter formats. If he gets a chance then he will bat at No.5 or 6 only, as a finisher. We’ve seen how Dhoni did coming in to bat that number in the last 4-5 overs of the innings. The same will be expected from him,” Gavaskar said.
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