Young Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel has shown extraordinary class. Occasions like Jurel’s debut Test match and scoring a Test match century shouldn’t go unnoted. Dhruv Jurel made history when, on October 3, 2023, he made the maiden Test century, 125 runs off 210 balls, scoring 125 runs and putting India in an excellent position in the match. The great MS Dhoni, while batting for India, never scored a ton in the Test from that position. Jurel has Jurel’s bloomed in the role of wicketkeeper and made a mark, combining youthful energy and concentration of a seasoned veteran. Scoring from that position, ‘No. 5’, made him just the 3rd wicketkeeper to achieve that position. Since Z. 2000.
Century Born of Grit and Grace
Jurel’s knock illustrated the emotional complexities of playing Test cricket. Day two brought incoming batter Jurel in at 188/3 while India clung to a slight lead and the West Indies were packing their innings at 162. The ball and pitch gave reason to be cautious as 24 year old Jurel at the crease attempted to score against West Indies seamers aggravating thex defense. The wicket was giving some assistance. Undeterred was Jurel as he carved his innings while forming a 206 run sixth wicket partnership with all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja reached his half century in a delightfully entertaining fashion as he smashed five sixes in Jurel’s innings, which included 15 boundaries of his own, while calculating his defense as Jurel became aggressive with the pulls.
Jurel reached his century in the 80th over and celebrated with a mock salute to his fans. He explained the gesture was in respect to the army for the indians saying, “the army deserves it” and explained after the game he was happy to represent his roots of Agra which is a military town. By stumps, India closed at 448/5, leading by 286 runs, with Jurel’s dismissal to debutant Khary Pierre capping a day of dominance.
To say this is a fluke would just be speaking foolishly. Jurel’s Test journey is still in its infancy—he’s played just six games—but no one can ignore the 255 runs he scored at an average of 36.42. And this is the one that showed the transformation Jurel is making, transitioning from an IPL finisher to a red-ball anchor of the batting order.
The Rare Feat: Top-Five Ton for a Keeper
What makes Jurel’s innings so special is the position he scored it from. He made it to an exclusive club after scoring a Test century from the 5th position, being the 8th Indian wicketkeeper to complete a century while batting in the top 5, including the great Vijay Manjrekar who scored his century first back in 1953 against the West Indies. Jurel is also the 3rd Indian keeper to do this in 23 years, alongside the likes of Deep Dasgupta who scored a century in Multan and Rishabh Pant.
The challenge is to score runs in a high position, as the wicketkeeper is usually fatigued and has to sit. Scoring this at home also in his 4th Test increases the rarity. Indian Keepers score home Test centuries are the stuff of legends. Jurel shares this achievement with Pant and Dhoni, both of whom debuted their home tons here in Ahmedabad. It is the top 5 position that makes his achievement the most special of all.
**Dhoni’s Shadow**: _A Comparison of Captains and Keepers
MS Dhoni, a celebrated finisher and iconic keeper from India, managed to redeem himself with a score of six centuries in tests (which spans over a career of nine decades). He did, however, score his runs at the bottom of the order, at positions six and seven, where he was a crisis man, scoring with helicopter strokes and astounding composure to save a sinking innings. Even though he experimented with the top five positions in five tests (which he played in the earlier stages of his career) he never broke the three-figure mark and instead, prioritized his team’s stability (as opposed to his individual glory).
Idolizing Dhoni, Jurel quipped in an interview, “If I am even five percent of MS Dhoni, I will be happy.” Jurel’s Ranchi rescue in 2024 (as did many other players) echoed double-master strokes from Dhoni and his Ahmedabad poise was a reminder of Thala’s tactical genius. Even so, in surpassing Dhoni’s top-five century drought, Jurel marks his place in the world. He fuses Dhoni’s unflappability with Pant’s bold arrogance.
Match momentum and India’s dominance
In Ahmedabad, India shifted their dominance at the tests (which were to be played over three matches). Under the captaincy of Kraigg Brathwaite with 47 runs scored, the West Indies team collapsed under the impressive bowling of Ravichandran Ashwin and Jadeja. Jurel’s partnerships sewed in with Jadeja, and his historic lower order partnerships as a keeper, won him the match. Jurel’s was the innings that shifted gears for the team, even if KL Rahul’s 101 runs claimed to set the tone.
Given the busy schedule for India, Jurel’s century shows that even the batting order’s depth can withstand the absence of Rohit Sharma. Jurel perfectly showcased the keeper-batsman skills of Dhoni, and surpassed Pant in some record milestones, while also making some record glove saves and catches during the first day.
From Jurel’s IPL to India’s future greatness
Jurel’s rise in stardom has been record setting. Starting with domestic games in Uttar Prades, he was noted in IPL 2023 for the Rajasthan Royals, and earned his first test cap against England last year. He scored 90 not out in Ranchi and his Ahmedabad performance will define his career. He is 24 and has defending techniques against both seam and spin, Jurel is Dhoni’s successor for India’s next torch bearer of wicketkeeping.
As his record is watched during the 3rd test day with the West Indies batting and trailing, Jurel has set an enduring record. He is not just emulating players to succeed, he is redefining success.
