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Keaton Jennings: Find out more about England's latest call-up to their tour of India

Keaton Jennings of Durham celebrates reaching 200 during day four of the Specsavers County Championship Division One v Yorkshire, 23 June 2016

Who is Keaton Jennings? We profile the Durham opener who became the 19th England centurion on Test debut in India...

England had seemingly finally found an opening partner for Alastair Cook in 19-year-old Haseeb Hameed - so impressive in his first three Tests in India, but his departure from the tour to a broken finger again left a vacancy at the top of the order.

Jennings more than filled it with his debut ton in the fourth Test in Mumbai. Here's all you need to know about the new England Test star...

Full name: Keaton Kent Jennings
Age: 24
Born: Johannesburg, South Africa
Twitter: @JetJennings

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We take a look at the left-hander in action for Durham against Yorkshire in 2014.

What is his cricketing pedigree?

Jennings is the son of former South Africa coach (between 2004-2005), Ray Jennings, and a previous South Africa under-19 captain - even leading a successful 4-2 ODI series win over England in 2011, where he opened the batting with a certain Quinton de Kock.

But Jennings, whose mother is from Sunderland, ultimately committed himself to serving a four-year qualification period to become eligible to play for England, after being recommended to Durham by Albie Morkel.

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South African batsman Quinton De Kock celebrates
Image: South Africa's Quinton De Kock was a former opening partner of Jennings' in the under 19s

How many runs has he scored?

Jennings averages 35.89 over his first-class career, with 16 fifties and 12 tons; the first of which came in July 2013, at home against Derbyshire. While he struggled during the following two County Championship seasons - scoring just one further hundred - it was in 2016 that Jennings truly burst onto the scene.

Jennings finished the year as the leading scorer in Division One, with 1,548 runs - smashing two fifties and seven centuries; one of which was a highest first-class score, an unbeaten 221 against the reigning champs, Yorkshire, no less. While the year ended in disaster for cash-strapped Durham, with relegation and a points deduction, Jennings' at least ended with a personal high - awarded the Cricket Writers' Club 'County Championship player of the year' award.

What kind of opener can England expect?

Image: Can Jennings follow in the footsteps of one of England's all-time greatest openers, Wally Hammond?

For the superstitious among you, the signs are positive, with Jennings sharing his birthday - June 19 - with one of England's greatest ever openers, Wally Hammond. However, it might be a bit of a stretch to expect Jennings to match his 7,249 Test runs across 85 caps, with an average of 58.45 and top score of 336 not out - a Test record at the time in 1933.

In comparison to the man he might replace, Jennings is not quite as obdurate an opener, with a first-class strike-rate of 46.40 against Hameed's 37.96, but that's not to say that the left-hander is of the swashbuckling variety - although the 88 he smashed off 58 balls in the final of the 2016 NatWest T20 Blast might suggest otherwise. It's the highest score ever recorded at on finals day, though it wasn't enough to see Durham triumph over Northamptonshire.

What does another England opening great make of him?

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Mike Atherton says Keaton Jennings deserves his England call-up after a fantastic season for Durham

"I thought he played superbly," added Atherton. "What you look for in a new players is that they are not afraid and he did not look overawed at all.

"There was no surprise he played the seamers nicely with his South African and Durham grounding, but with a combination of aggression and a solid defence, he played the spinners well too.

"He's a great find and I think when they play Test cricket in July next summer, England will look to play Cook, Hameed and Jennings all in the top three, and slot Root down to No 4."

Live Test Cricket

Live coverage of the fourth Test between India and England in Mumbai continues on Sky Sports 2.

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