"You didn't lose the match because of Dhruv Jurel" - Aakash Chopra on keeper being blamed for India's loss in ENG vs IND 2025 3rd Test

Former India player Aakash Chopra has noted that Dhruv Jurel is wrongly being blamed for the Indian team's loss in the third Test against England. While acknowledging that the substitute wicketkeeper conceded a few byes, he highlighted that most of those deliveries were unreachable.

India suffered a 22-run loss in the third Test against England at Lord's on Monday, July 14. The visitors conceded 36 byes across the two innings, with Jurel being behind the stumps for the majority of the first innings and the entire second innings.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener opined that Jurel can't solely be held accountable for the visitors' loss.

"A narrative is being set that India lost because of the byes Dhruv Jurel conceded, that he came in as a substitute keeper, he didn't bat, Rishabh Pant did that, but the byes he conceded was the only reason. You didn't lose the match because of Dhruv Jurel," he said (5:00).

Chopra highlighted the difficulties of keeping wickets at Lord's, pointing out that most deliveries Jurel missed were ungatherable.

"There is a problem at Lord's. The ball goes in one direction, and then keeps moving in the other direction with the slope. I was seeing deliveries from (Jasprit) Bumrah and (Mohammed) Siraj, the kid was diving, but wasn't able to reach there. The balls were so far away. If the ball had gone past the batter where it finished, you would have said it's a wide," he observed.

Aakash Chopra pointed out that wides are generally not given in Tests, with those balls moving even further away from the wicketkeeper after crossing the batters. He opined that it was virtually impossible to stop those deliveries, urging the fans to be a little sensitive, highlighting that Dhruv Jurel didn't perform that badly.

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"A team wins together and loses together" - Aakash Chopra on India's loss in ENG vs IND 2025 3rd Test being attributed to Dhruv Jurel's mistakes

Dhruv Jurel took three catches as a substitute keeper in England's first innings. [p/c: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that India's loss in the Lord's Test can be attributed to many other reasons.

"When you lose a match, you start looking at problems, as to what all went wrong. Jamie Smith's catch was dropped at five, and he scored a fifty. You were 248/3 at one stage, then you had another sudden collapse. I am talking about the first innings. So there will always be reasons. A team wins together and loses together," he said (6:20).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that a Test is never lost just due to one player's error.

"I am yet to come across a Test match that you lost because of one guy's mistake. It can happen in T20s, but it never happens in Test cricket. It's a huge game that unfolds over five days. I would say cut Dhruv Jurel some slack. Mistakes happen, but he is a good keeper, and he will be there for a long period of time," Chopra observed.

It remains to be seen if Rishabh Pant, who injured his finger while keeping in the first innings of the Lord's Test, is fit to play the fourth Test in Manchester. Dhruv Jurel might replace Pant in the XI if the Indian vice-captain isn't available.