Indian wicketkeeper batsman Dhruv Jurel made it to the Test team during the absence of Rishabh Pant in the West Indies series and then strengthened his performance with excellent form. The Rajasthan Royals batsman has now created a stir within the selection committee with his recent dominance in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy for Uttar Pradesh.
The ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy has indeed been a dream tournament for many players who were trying to make it to the Indian white-ball teams. Ishan Kishan might have been the only player to crack the show and earn a ticket to return to the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, but many others have also given stellar auditions.
Before the announcement of the ODI team for the New Zealand home series, the competition has started among the Indian domestic wicketkeepers to secure a place in the team. Reports have claimed that the Indian selectors are considering Rishabh Pant as a wicket-keeping backup.
Dhruv Jurel makes a splash in Vijay Hazare Trophy with maiden List A century
Indian wicketkeeper batsman Dhruv Jurel plays for Uttar Pradesh in domestic cricket. The batsman has been promoted to the upper order and currently stands as the top-order batsman in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Jurel took advantage of this opportunity very gracefully and showed invincible form.
Coming off a disappointing series against South Africa, where he could not even score 50 runs after 4 innings, Jurel was not even considered for the ICC T20 World Cup. However, when the UP batsman made a fresh start at VHT, he had his best List A season with the bat.
In the first game against Hyderabad, the batsman played a strong inning of 80 runs in just 60 balls and ended it with a catch and a stumping. He scored another half-century in the next game against Chandigarh and was waiting for the right opportunity to score his first List A century.
Aryan Juyal’s early dismissal set the stage for Juyal to play a long innings. He made the innings look easy with some big hits and scored 160* off 101 balls with 15 fours and 8 sixes and a strike rate of 158.41. The batsman has scored 307 runs in 3 matches at an average of 153.50 and a stormy strike rate of over 125.
Dhruv Jurel scored 160*(101) against Baroda in Vijay Hazare Trophy.
– 80(61) in the first match.
– 67(57) in the second match.
– 160*(101) runs in the third match.Incredible performance from Jurel at No. 3, Indian talent pool in wicketkeeping at the top level. pic.twitter.com/SZKdoV12cx
– Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) 29 December 2025
Indian selectors are backing Ishan Kishan and Jitesh Sharma as replacements for Rishabh Pant
Recent social media reports and claims from some senior sports journalists like Abhishek Tripathi have confirmed that the Indian selectors are planning to prefer Rishabh Pant for the ODI team. Pant has not played a single match since August 2024.
Ishan Kishan is the frontrunner for the role as the left-handed batsman has been in excellent form in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy. He was also called as the second keeper in the squad for the T20 World Cup.
Ishaan Kishan’s good times are about to begin…
-Abhishek Tripathi/Abhishek Tripathi (@abishereporter) 27 December 2025
Abhishek Tripathi also said that although the selectors are more inclined towards the Jharkhand batsman, someone from the Indian management has also kept Jitesh Sharma’s name in the loop. Jitesh recently lost his place in the T20 team to Ishan Kishan.
Jitesh is also in line… https://t.co/1grxxkr5Pf
-Abhishek Tripathi/Abhishek Tripathi (@abishereporter) 28 December 2025
After Sanju Samson’s exit from the Rajasthan Royals team, Dhruv Jurel will be promoted as the leading wicketkeeper in the team. Along with being the leading wicketkeeper, he can also be ranked at the top of the batting order for IPL 2026.
Dhruv Jurel will not only have a batting role in the team, but he will also be the key man taking some decisions from behind the wicket. This is a good opportunity for Dhruv Jurel to flex his muscles and increase his impact in limited overs cricket as India look for options in the middle order.
Also read: T20 World Cup panic!! Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya out….
