Rajasthan Royalsโ keeper-batter Dhruv Jurel played a vital innings in the IPL 2026 Eliminator against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Mullanpur. Youngster Vaibhav Sooryavanshi set the tone with his blistering batting of 97 runs off 29 balls, but on the other hand, Yashasvi Jaiswal was struggling with his strike rate. Jurel had to play an attacking brand of cricket to keep the scoreboard running and thatโs exactly what the youngster did.
The 25-year-old managed to keep up with the momentum, scoring 50 runs off just 21 balls. His aggressive batting allowed Rajasthan to build up the pressure on Hyderabad, who looked clueless with the ball. Meanwhile, Rajasthanโs lower middle order struggled to live up to the expectations and hence, the Riyan Parag-led side finished on 243 runs, or else, they should have gotten 280 comfortably.ย
In the end, Rajasthan registered a 47-run win. After the game, Jurel opened up on his role in the team, stating that he is meant to keep the ship steady and play as per the match situation. He highlighted the importance of not losing wickets and exposing the middle order early, which has also troubled Rajasthan in the past.ย
“I won’t say I have locked anything. T20 has become the toughest format now, because even if you score 240, 250, it’s not safe. What I want to be is the sort of player who can bat at three, five, seven, anywhere, and whatever the match situation is, read it well and win the game,โ Jurel said when asked at the press conference.
“Whenever the two of them [Sooryavanshi and Jaiswal] are playing, and they are playing beautifully, I should try to build a partnership with them. Not try to hit from both ends, because then we might lose a wicket. I am meant to keep the ship steady and take it forward. I don’t want my lower middle order to be batting in the 11th or 12th over. That’s what I have been doing, building a platform for the lower-middle order,โ he added.ย
Jurel thanks RR management
Jurel was retained for INR 14 crore by Rajasthan, which was subjected to immense criticism, as a large section of the experts believed that the keeper-batter would have been much cheaper in the auction. RR regardless backed him and given him an important role in the middle order, which Jurel seems to have mastered well. Keeping that in mind, the cricketer thanked the management after the IPL Eliminator.ย
“I would say everyone is becoming fearless in terms of batting, and it comes from the support staff, how they back the players. If someone says you are going to play 14 matches, I am going to play differently. So that is the mantra behind it. They back you,โ he said.
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