The stage was set for Shreyas Iyer to excel, but it was young Test wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel, who stole the thunder after the India ‘A’ skipper failed to get going and fell for a single-digit score. Jurel, who had kept wickets as a substitute in place of injured Rishabh Pant in two Test matches in England and later played in the final game at the Oval, batted with refreshing freedom against the Australia ‘A’ bowlers on Day Three of the four-day match at the Ekana Stadium here on Thursday.  

181-run unbroken stand

Coming in when India ‘A’ were in a spot of bother after Sai Sudharsan and Iyer had fallen within 20 balls, Jurel went on to register his second first-class century to help the home team post a strong response of 403-4 at stumps on the penultimate day, to the opposition’s 532-6 declared. With not much at stake in the game, both not-out batters Jurel (113) and Devdutt Padikkal (86) will strive to build on their already big 181-partnership for the fifth wicket.