India's promising young gun, Dhruv Jurel, has caught the eye of former Australian skipper Tim Paine with a stellar performance in India’s A-team match against Australia A. Dhruv Jurel, who has been included into India’s squad for the five match Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia as a back-up player, showcased his immense potential with a commanding performance. Paine believes Jurel can play a major role for India in the high-profile Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

“I don't know if you saw much of the highlights, but after seeing him bat (against Australia A) – even though he’s a wicket-keeper, from what I’ve seen on this tour and from India’s batting in the last couple of months, I'd be staggered if he doesn't play," Paine told Australian radio station SEN on Tuesday.

“He scored one of the more polished 80s I've seen, and we were all sitting around as staff of Cricket Australia and thought, ‘Wow, this guy can seriously play’.”

Jurel was impressive in both technique and temperament, dealing with Australia A bowlers with maturity. Paine believes that Jurel will face huge challenge during the BGT but also thinks he will be ready to face the challenge. Jurel made his India debut against England earlier this year in Rajkot and instantly made a significant impact. During the India A Test, Dhruv Jurel contributed with 80 and 60 respectively in the Melbourne Test.

“He's 23 and he’s played three Test matches, but he looked a class above all of his teammates, to be fair, and handled the pace and bounce really well, which can be unusual for an Indian player,” Paine said.

“Keep an eye out for him this summer. I think he's going to impress a lot of Australian fans. Even though it’s going to be another step up against the big three (Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood), he looks like he has the game to play Test cricket,” Paine said.