Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara was all praise for youngster Dhruv Jurel following his maiden India call-up on January 12.
Jurel plays for the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL where Sangakkara is head coach.
Speaking to reporters after India's squad for the first two England Tests was announced Sangakkara expressed his pleasure over Jurel's selection, 'He’s (Jurel) a fantastic young man, a really good player who has worked really hard to get where he has. And that the fact that he’s gone through our development camps and ended up in the Test side is fantastic.'
Sangakkara stated that Jurel's selection is also reflective of one of the Royals' key motivators and performance indicators that is to produce players for India.
Praising the 22-year-old, Sangakkara said, 'His work ethic, demeanor, understands pressure. He came in last season in one of the most difficult positions and scored so many runs for us. He’s an absolute match-winner in the short format. He’s always going to do well. He’s just that kind of player.'
Jurel made his IPL debut in 2023 and played 13 games for the Royals, smashing a 152 runs at an incredible strike-rate 172.73.
The youngster has also served as vice-captain for India's U-19 World Cup team.