After struggling to get going in the recently-concluded five-match T20I series, young England all-rounder Jacob Bethell gave a good account of himself in the ODI-opener against India in Nagpur. The 21-year-old hit a half-century on Thursday, and also grabbed the prized scalp of Shreyas Iyer. Bethell will be heading to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy later this month, before returning to India in March to get his first taste of the Indian Premier League. For the unversed, Bethell was picked up by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for Rs 2.2 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction.
Speaking after the first ODI, Bethell said he looks forward to joining the franchise, and revealed all the love he has been receiving from RCB fans ever since his signing.
“RCB is a great franchise, and I’ve felt the love over here. Every ground I’ve been to, as soon as I walk onto the pitch, they start chanting: RCB, RCB. There’s definitely a lot of support,” Bethell told Daily Mail.
After meeting Kohli for the first time recently, Bethell opened up on the opportunity to play alongside the former RCB captain. “To play along with the likes of players like that would be really cool,” he added.
Bethell considers himself as a proper all-rounder, and could come in handy for both England and RCB over the next three months or so.
“As soon as you play against someone, you realise you’re playing the same game and they can make the same mistakes you can. It’s just that those guys obviously got a lot better at not making the mistakes,” Bethell explained.
“I see myself as a genuine all-rounder. Whenever I get the chance to bowl and state my claim, and put us in a good position, I will. It’s a massive part of my package.”
England captain Jos Buttler was full of praise for Bethell, who has already represented England in all three formats.
“I was watching him bat and saying ‘I couldn’t remember how to bat at 21’, it took me till I was about 28, I think! I’m really pleased for him. He didn’t find it easy at the start but he was very mature, measured, soaked up some pressure and came through it. It was a really mature innings from him. He’ll learn a lot from this, it’s a really good experience,” Buttler said.
Meanwhile, England lost the 1st ODI by 4 wickets. The second game will be played on Sunday.
Topics mentioned in this article