"He was so fast at making the right decision" - Sir Alastair Cook hails Dhruv Jurel's batting in the 4th India-England Test
Former England captain Alastair Cook praised newcomer Dhruv Jurel's swift decision-making skills and the ability to pick length in the fourth Test in Ranchi.
Jurel enjoyed a dream outing, playing invaluable knocks in both innings to help India take an unassailable 3-1 series lead. In the first innings, Jurel walked into bat with India reeling at 161/5 in reply to England's 353.
Yet, he remained unperturbed by the situation and scored a magnificent 90 to steer India to a seemingly improbable 307. Jurel wasn't finished with his heroics yet as he scored 39* in a tense final innings with India chasing 192 and struggling at 120/5.
Speaking on TNT Sports after the game, Cook expressed his admiration towards Jurel's batting skills on a challenging wicket.
"What impressed me was how he picked length. He was so fast at making the right decision. You see his trigger movement – this was at the start of the partnership on a wide ball – but he’s so good at getting back and forward and making the right decision at the right time for that ball," said Jurel.
Cook further highlighted the difference between Shubman Gill and Dhruv Jurel's batting styles. He said:
"Shubman Gill played slightly differently, he’s not quite as quick on his feet but he’s still a class player but Jurel, he does a little forward press and if he does need to go forward he’s sharp, he’s quick and that little bit more explosion means when he plays a shot he might be able to get a single."
The duo shared an unbeaten 72-run partnership to win India the thrilling Test match from 120/5, with Gill scoring a 124-ball 52,
Dhruv Jurel was selected on the back of a consistent run of recent form and scored an impressive 46 on Test debut in the third game in Rajkot.
"Jadeja in particular showed probably why he should be batting a little bit lower" - Alastair Cook
Alastair Cook explained why Ravindra Jadeja may be better suited to the lower order by pointing out the difference between him and Dhruv Jurel in balancing attack and defence.
The star all-rounder scored a game-changing century at No.5 in the third Test but struggled to get going in the Ranchi encounter with scores of 12 and 4.
"Jadeja in particular showed probably why he should be batting a little bit lower. Yes he can score runs but the ability, under pressure, to find that balance between attack and defence under pressure – pressure does funny thing to you. Jadeja is a world-class all-rounder, but batting at five there he struggled in terms of taking no risks because he didn’t want to get out or trying to put a bit of pressure back on as a batter" said Cook.
He added:
"But Jurel found that balance perfectly with his feet movement and sharpness of mind. Jadeja was just dead-batting everything, there’s no chance of getting any runs whatsoever. So even when Jurel is defending because he’s so sharp when he’s tucking the ball on the leg-side if it’s perfect he may get a run." said Cook."
Despite an overall average of over 36, Ravindra Jadeja has struggled at positions above No.6 with an average of under 24 in Tests.
Nevertheless, his timely batting contributions with his match-winning bowling performances have made the champion cricketer the World's No.1 ranked Test all-rounder.