Acouple of months ago, as the English cricket team, famous for its aggressive and much-hyped Bazball approach, arrived in India for a five-match Test series, the hosts already had their backs against the wall.

For, K.L. Rahul and Shreyas Iyer—seen as the replacements for the veteran Test batting duo of Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara—were battling injuries. To add to India's misery, its star batter Virat Kohli, too, decided to take a break. It was then that the selectors called upon two youngsters to step into the shoes of these senior players. And the rest, as they say, is history. Both Dhruv Jurel, 23, and Sarfaraz Khan, 26, made pivotal contributions in their debut series, which India went on to win 4-1. If Sarfaraz scored three 50s in the three Tests that he played, wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv's resilient 90 in the first inning of the fourth Test followed by an unbeaten 39 in the second inning helped India win the match, and seal the series, even after conceding a first-inning lead. At the India Today Conclave, as Dhruv and Sarfaraz shared their life journey, it not only revealed their indomitable spirit and doughty determination, but also gave insights into the sacrifices their parents made to help them reach where they are today. If his Kargil veteran father's discipline rubbed off on a young Dhruv and helped the Uttar Pradesh cricketer realise his childhood dream of wearing the baggy blue cap, Sarfaraz's father's poem turned out to be the wisdom nuggets that kept the Mumbai batter inspired as he waited for his maiden national call-up even after playing several impressive innings in the domestic circuit. Dhruv recalled how his mother sold her gold chain to buy him his first cricket kit. He had promised to buy her "something in gold" whenever he started earning well. "I did that last year," he shared. And then there was the emotional moment when Dhruv's father, Nem Chand, reciprocated his son's famous salute after his maiden half century with a proud salute of his own at the conclave. Sarfaraz remembered how he preferred to sleep on the ground to save time for the next practice session. On other occasions, his father would drive him to the ground on a two-wheeler, getting drenched in the rain. If Sarfaraz today wears jersey number 97, it is not just because he was born in 1997 but also because the numbers 9 and 7 when spoken together in Hindi—'nau-saat'—sound like his father's name, Naushad. Clearly, when children put in that extra effort and the parents back them with steely resolve, success stories like Dhruv's and Sarfaraz's are scripted. "It was always my dream to play Test cricket," said Dhruv, "which I believe is the purest form of cricket." "Test cricket is difficult because it goes on for five days," added Sarfaraz. "Lambi race ka ghoda banna padta hai (you have to prepare for the long race)." It may still be early, but the way these young guns have started their international careers, it looks like the future of Test cricket in India is in safe hands.