Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel's centuries took India to 509/9d in first innings of Colombo Test.
Rishabh Pant made 63 runs and, with Dhruv Jurel, took India past the 400-run mark before his dismissal. Dhruv Jurel persisted and rallied the tail alongside him. After batting alongside Mohammed Siraj and waiting a long time on 99 runs, Dhruv Jurel took his time and spent some time on 95 as the rain stopped play.
When the game started up again, he finished his ton with a dangerous single. After that, he celebrated by flexing his biceps to reveal a brand-new tattoo that said "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisaan."
India's innings was declared 503/9 by Shubman Gill, with Prasidh Krishna scoring 4* and Jurel unbeaten at 115 with 9 fours and 2 sixes.
In the post-day two conference, Dhruv Jurel talked about the risky single he took to complete his century and about the ‘Jai Jawaan, Jai Kisaan’ tattoo.
"So actually, till 99, I was getting runs, and on 99, he (Asitha Fernando) started bowling good lengths, and Sri Lanka started fielding well too. So, when I played that shot (a straight punch off Fernando), it was going over the head of the bowler, and I thought, There is some gap from the fielder, but as I saw him (the fielder) coming close, I was like, "Oh! What have I done?" Jurel said at the post-day two press conference.
"My grandfather was a farmer, and my father was a soldier. So, those are my roots, and I don't want to forget them. So, that salute should go to my father and grandfather," he said.
Jurel had added 112 runs with Rishabh Pant, who, with his usual flair, hit 6 fours and 2 sixes in his 63-run knock. Jurel explained his batting methods while batting alongside a sparkling shot-maker like Pant.
"We all know Pant is such a terrific player and what he has done for India in Australia and England. So, whenever he is in, I only seek his advice, because he has so much experience. So, I always ask him for advice as to what I should do in a particular situation.
As you can see, Test cricket has different ways of playing, and it makes the game beautiful. When you play with Pant, it's a very terrific experience. I can't play like him, the way he has been playing since childhood,” Jurel said.
“My game plan is to see which bowler I should take down and which spell I should play, and I always ask Pant because he is a wicketkeeper, I am a wicketkeeper, and we play in the middle order, so it's a very good experience,”
The wicketkeeper batter also offered a fitness update on Pant, who did not do the stumper's duty towards the end of the day.
“Right now, he got a hit on his right shoulder, and we are closely monitoring him. Today I did wicketkeeping because his shoulder was a little bad. Hopefully, I think he will be fit tomorrow," Jurel explained.
Sri Lanka ended day two on 8/2 with Prasidh Krishna and Manav Suthar picking the wickets.
(PTI inputs)