Rahul Dravid defends Dhruv Jurel after yet another close defeat in IPL 2025

There was one match but three winners on Sunday, 19 May. Gujarat Titans’ 10-wicket hammering of Delhi Capitals in a one-sided contest confirmed playoff qualification for three teams.

Gujarat, Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru all booked their spots in the IPL 2025 playoffs, leaving just one place in the final four up for grabs. Rarely in recent memory have three of the four playoff spots been sealed as early as the 60th league game. However, such has been the dominance of Gujarat, Punjab and Bengaluru this season that the race for the playoffs could be decided by the penultimate week of the league stage.

Gujarat Titans stormed to the top of the table and strengthened their bid for a top-two finish with a commanding win in Delhi. After restricting Delhi to 199 on a batting-friendly pitch, Gujarat chased down the target with six deliveries to spare—thanks to an unbeaten 61-ball 108 from Sai Sudharsan and a 53-ball 93 not out from Shubman Gill at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. DC vs GT Coverage | Full Scorecard

While the top two spots remain a three-way race, the battle for the final playoff berth features a number of intriguing permutations and combinations. Mumbai Indians, currently in fourth place, along with Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants, are the only teams still in contention for the last playoff spot. Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals and SunRisers Hyderabad have all been eliminated.

Dhruv Jurel, in particular, came under fire for his performance, but Dravid firmly defended the Rs 14 crore retention, stating that the young wicketkeeper-batter had done an excellent job under pressure all season.

“In every single match that he has come out in, he’s been chasing 13-14 runs per over — that is not easy,” said Dravid at the post-match press conference. “He played really well, even though we lost a bunch of wickets in the middle overs. He brought us close to the target. It’s not like he’s walked in needing 7 an over and failed. It’s always 12-13, sometimes even more. I think Jurel has done well for us at No. 5. It’s a very difficult position to bat in.”

Dravid also voiced hope for the future of Rajasthan’s young Indian core, which has drawn criticism this season. He noted that many of the players are set to gain valuable international experience in the coming year, and expected them to return stronger in IPL 2026.

“We’ve seen the talent — today again, the batting from Jaiswal, Vaibhav, Jurel, even Sanju and Riyan. We have a strong group of young Indian batsmen. They’ll only be better in a year,” Dravid said.

Expanding on that point, he added:
“Vaibhav (Suryavanshi) will play a lot of cricket, like the India U19 setup. Riyan Parag too. These guys will be playing tough cricket, international cricket through the year. So hopefully when they return next season, they’ll be more experienced. They’re already very talented.”

Dravid Rues Lack of Finishing Touch
Rajasthan fell short against Punjab Kings on Sunday, despite a blazing start. Openers Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal powered the team to a 50-run stand in just three overs, but the Royals failed to capitalize and were restricted to 209 in their chase of 220.

“We’ve got close but haven’t been able to finish the job,” Dravid admitted. “It’s been one of those seasons where you feel we give 15-20 runs too many with the ball, and with the bat, after getting into good positions, we haven’t been able to finish with the big shots we needed from the lower middle order.”

Punjab were 159 for five in the 16th over but hammered 60 runs in the final four overs to reach 219/5 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium — a period Dravid believed swung the game.

“It’s been five games now — 10 runs, tie, 1 run, 2 runs, 10 runs again. These are one or two hits in that final phase that we just haven’t managed.”

He also pointed out that bowlers should share the responsibility for the defeats.

“There’s no point only blaming the batsmen. With the ball too, this wasn’t a 220 pitch. It was more of a 195-200 surface, and we gave 20 extra,” Dravid said. “If we look at the stats, we’ve not taken enough wickets or controlled the runs despite good starts. That’s something we have to work on for next season.”