Jurel joins special company after maiden Test ton, Jadeja closes on Dhoni's special feat

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], October 3 (ANI): Dhruv Jurel became just the 12th India wicketkeeper to hammer a century in Test format following his swashbuckling exploits on the second day of the first Test against the West Indies on Friday in Ahmedabad.

After missing out on the special milestone against England last year, Jurel remained undeterred despite standing on 99. He whipped it wide of mid-on off West Indies skipper Roston Chase spinning delivery to drill the ball for a four to bring his first hundred in his sixth Test.

He celebrated the landmark moment by holding the bat vertically and moving it to his left, leaving the spectators wondering what it actually meant. The dressing room stood on its feet and applauded Jurel for his sublime strokeplay. Jadeja, too, was all smiles and applauded on the other end.

The 24-year-old is the fifth Indian wicketkeeper to score his maiden Test ton against the Caribbean side, joining the special ranks of Vijay Manjrekar, Farokh Engineer, Ajay Ratra and Wriddhiman Saha. For India, it was the third century by a designated wicketkeeper in 2025, the most for them in a calendar year and the joint second-highest for any side in a calendar year, behind South Africa four in 2013.

In the final moments of the day, Jurel flaunted his boundary-hitting muscle, sweeping, cutting and driving the ball for boundaries. He continued to bat at a high tempo and took the aerial route by dispatching the ball for a towering six straight down the ground. Jurel eventually perished at the hands of debutant Khary Pierre after giving away a healthy outside edge to Shai Hope.

As Jurel basked in the applause from the limited number of spectators, the 34-year-old Pierre celebrated his first Test scalp. After his 206-run partnership with Jadeja ended, the world number one Test all-rounder continued to exude his composed presence on the crease.

Vice-captain Jadeja, who occasionally ambled out of the crease to launch the ball into the stands, pushed the ball for a single and celebrated his century with his usual bat-sword celebration. This was the third instance of three batters scoring a ton in a Test innings for India in 2025.

During his scorching display, Jadeja tonked five sixes off his vice-captain counterpart Jomel Warrican, the joint second most by an Indian batter against an opposition bowler in a Test innings. Jadea stands behind former captain MS Dhoni six sixes off Dave Mohammad in St John in 2006. The day concluded with India posting 448/5 in 128 overs, leading by 286 runs. (ANI)

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