Dhruv Jurel was appointed captain of the India A cricket team in the second and final unofficial Test against Australia A, which started on Tuesday at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
Jurel, originally named vice-captain for the series, was promoted after regular skipper Shreyas Iyer withdrew from the India A squad, citing personal reasons.
The 24-year-old wicketkeeper batsman, who represents Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, made a strong impression in the first India A vs Australia A unofficial Test match with a brilliant 140 off 197 balls from the middle order.
The opening Test of this series, afflicted by the rain, ended in a high-scoring draw after both teams piled on the runs. Australia A declared at 532 for 6 before India A responded with 531 for 7 before declaring their innings. The match was also played in Lucknow.
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Jurel has been in fine touch this year. On the A team’s tour of England earlier in the summer, he piled up 227 runs at an average of 75.66, hitting three half-centuries in four innings.
Earlier, he also shone in the IPL, where he finished as the Rajasthan Royals’ third-highest scorer with 333 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of 156.33.
After the four-day game concludes at Ekana, India A and Australia A will also face off in three one-day fixtures beginning on September 30. All three matches will be played at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.
Rajasthan Royals’ Riyan Parag and Yudhvir Singh are part of the India A squad for the one-day matches.
