Former India head coach Ravi Shastri wants young India batter Dhruv Jurel as a specialist batter in the opening Test match against Australia. Speaking on the ICC review, Shastri said that Jurel had nerves of steel and he could be played as a specialist batter in the middle-order as well. However, India have a selection headache with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill unavailable for the first Test match at Perth, which starts on 22 November as well.

“I think he can easily play as a (specialist) batter,” Shastri said. “What impressed me most was his temperament, his calmness when the chips were down and the tightness he brought to his game – especially under pressure. Under pressure, you can see a lot of players struggling. You can see them being fidgety. You can see them being all over the shop. You can see those nerves coming through. But in this guy’s case, his temperament stood out.”

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“Whenever the chips were down, even in that series against England (earlier this year) he stepped up to the plate. So I like what I saw and I’ll be quite prepared to give him a go if he’s in good nick,” he added.

However, Dhruv Jurel looked comfortable in the only tour game that he played against Australia A, contributing scores of 80 and 68 in a low-scoring clash as well. And, Ravi Shastri believed that the 23-year-old looked composed enough to win a fourth Test cap in Perth as well.

“I think seeing his form, he got 80 and 60, will do his confidence a world of good. And he’s got the range of shots as well. It’s not that he’s just a blocker there, he can play shots. He can bat with the tail as well. See, that’s why it becomes important. If you push Shubman up the order, it gives you more options in the middle order. So that’s how India could look to balance it if Rohit is missing,” Ravi Shastri concluded.