Sarfaraz Khan vs Dhruv Jurel - whose debut in Rajkot Test was more impressive?
Team India asserted their dominance over England with an incredible 434-run victory in the third Test of the five-match series in Rajkot. It was their highest margin of win run-wise in Tests, helping them to take a 2-1 series lead with two games remaining.
India had several heroic performances with bat and ball, starting with centuries by Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja in the first innings. Despite scoring 445, India were under pressure, thanks to a brilliant 153 from Ben Duckett.
However, led by Mohammed Siraj's four-wicket haul, the bowlers responded on the third day to dismiss England for 319. With a healthy lead of 126, Yashasvi Jaiswal decimated the English attack and scored another double-century. He received tremendous support from Shubman Gill, who fell nine short of a second century in as many matches.
Finally, Jadeja capped off his memorable outing with a five-wicket haul in the final innings as India triumphed emphatically.
Yet, amidst all these highlight performances were two debutants, Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel, who impressed at different times with crucial contributions. It led to the duo receiving praise from experts and fans for a solid start to their international careers.
But, to answer who was more impressive between the pair is quite a task that we attempt to figure out by deep diving into their performances in the Rajkot Test.
A look at Sarfaraz's overall performance
Apart from missing out on a well-deserved century, it is hard to imagine a better Test debut for Sarfaraz Khan.
With a truckload of runs in first-class cricket over the past few years and incredible recent form, the 26-year-old was under pressure to deliver the goods at the highest level. Sarfaraz did just that, with sparkling 60s under different circumstances in both innings of the Rajkot Test.
Sarfaraz waited anxiously through a 204-run fourth-wicket partnership between Rohit and Jadeja before finally getting his opportunity with the bat in the first innings. Yet, he showed no nerves in playing his maiden innings, scoring a quickfire 62 off 66 deliveries to drive home India's advantage.
The most impressive aspect of Sarfaraz's batting was his manipulation of the spinners with ridiculous ease. In hardly putting a foot wrong, the Mumbai batter was especially severe on first-Test hero, Tom Hartley, smashing him for three fours and a six.
Looking good for plenty more, Sarfaraz unfortunately got run out by Jadeja's indecision and walked back dejected. However, his knock was crucial as it guided India to a comfortable 314/5 from a still-precarious 237/4.
In the second innings, it was more of the same as the right-hander pummeled the hapless English attack for an unbeaten 68 off 72 deliveries before India declared their innings. While the pressure wasn't as high as in the first innings, the youngster showed the unselfish side of his game by taking the aggressive route from the get-go for the team's cause.
His four sixes in total in the match also highlighted his different gears as Sarfaraz had a debut outing to remember. Considering he was run out in the first innings without fault and remained unbeaten in the following innings, it is hard to find any negatives in the debutant's overall performance.
Rating: 10/10
A look at Dhruv Jurel's overall performance
Like Sarfaraz, Dhruv Jurel debuted for India on the back of impressive recent domestic form and a stellar overall first-class record.
Yet, judging by his overall performance, it would stem from his batting and wicketkeeping. Jurel had the opportunity to bat only once in the Rajkot Test and showed plenty of promise.
As England struck twice early on Day 2 to reduce India to 331/7, the 23-year-old had to prevent a lower-order collapse that could have been detrimental. Jurel faced the best English bowlers, James Anderson and Mark Wood, to start with and absorbed the onslaught to perfection.
Slowly, the youngster opened up and struck three magnificent sixes to finish on a well-compiled 46 off 104 deliveries. He was dropped twice in his innings on 32 but still could not cash in with a maiden half-century. Nevertheless, his 46 played a vital role in the hosts nearing the 450-run mark as they finished on 445 in the first innings.
Jurel's wicketkeeping skills were equally impressive as he took a sharp catch off an under edge from Ben Foakes in the final innings after a relatively straightforward stumping in the first innings.
However, his best moment on the field transpired when he showcased his game awareness and sprinted up to the stumps to run out the first-innings centurion Ben Duckett in the final innings. The dismissal was crucial as it propelled an English collapse that saw them bowled out for a paltry 122 in their run chase of 557.
Although he could have converted his 46 into a more substantial score, and the innings had a couple of chances, Jurel's debut in front of and behind the stumps was more than impressive.
Rating: 8/10
Who was more impressive?
Choosing between two impressive performers is an unenviable task that often comes down to circumstances, opportunities, and nitpicking between them. While Sarfaraz maximized his batting opportunities in both innings to the fullest, Jurel possibly left out a few runs despite playing a crucial hand.
What is also worth considering is that Sarfaraz was under more pressure for immediate results than Jurel. With KL Rahul waiting in the wings for a likely return in the fourth Test, the Rajkot game was a potential shootout between Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan.
However, thanks to KS Bharat's dismal batting exploits, Jurel would have likely played the rest of this series even if he endured a poor outing in Rajkot.
In conclusion, while both players entertained and performed admirably at different stages in the game, Sarfaraz ended up outdueling Jurel in the battle of debutants.
Winner: Sarfaraz Khan