"7th back-up wicketkeeper for T20 World Cup" - Fans react after Dhruv Jurel's quickfire innings in LSG vs RR IPL 2024 match

Fans were impressed with Dhurv Jurel's impressive knock of 52* off 34, which helped the Rajasthan Royals trump the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Saturday (April 27) in Lucknow.

Many fans were appreciative of the fact that the Royals backed Jurel during a patch of bad form, which paved the way for the keeper-batter to make a comeback. Before the LSG game, Jurel could garner only 50 runs in five innings.

After this match-winning knock, Jurel got his name added to one of the probables for the keeper slots in the Indian T20 World Cup 2024 squad in the eyes of the fans. Apart from him, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Dinesh Karthik and Jitesh Sharma are the players making a case for the big-ticket event.

Here's how fans reacted on X:

"Dhruv Jurel is now the 7th back-up wicketkeeper for the T20 World Cup," one fan tweeted.

"Cage match between Sanju Samson, Dinesh Karthik, Dhruv Jurel & Rishabh Pant," another had a humorous take on the keeper slot for the T20 WC.

"In any sane world , both Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel should be on the emirates flight to the World Cup as wicket keepers," a fan tweeted.

Some fans were impressed with Jurel's performances in Test cricket as well as the shortest format. Earlier this year, Jurel was named the Player of the Match for his contributions of 90 & 39*, which helped India secure a clinical victory over England in the 4th Test.

"Dhruv Jurel seems like such a different player from what we saw last year when he would play those small but crucial cameos. His Test knocks and now this one here speaks volumes of his maturity as a batter. The range is quite impressive," another fan noted the rise of Jurel.

"Dhruv Jurel played an important innings against England in the Test Match earlier..Very trustable player," another fan pointed out Jurel's performances in Tests.

"What a moment for Dhruv Jurel. First IPL fifty in his home state in front of his family. A Test debut for India before this. It's his year," a fan tweeted.

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Dhruv Jurel's Royals now have one foot in the IPL 2024 playoffs

The Rajasthan Royals opted to bowl against the Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday. Quickfire innings from skipper KL Rahul (76) and Deepak Hooda (50) boosted the Super Giants, taking them to 196. Sandeep Sharma took two wickets for the visitors.

In reply, Jos Buttler (34) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) provided a good start to the Royals. Thereafter, Sanju Samson (71*) and Dhurv Jurel (52*) were terrific under pressure to seal the chase in 19 overs.

With eight victories in nine games, RR have all but qualified for the IPL 2024 playoffs. The official confirmation will be relayed after the Royals win any of their remaining five games.

The Rajasthan-based franchise will meet the SunRisers Hyderabad in their next game on Thursday (May 2) in Hyderabad.