Jacob Bethell was seen as a risk when he made his England debut at number three against New Zealand in Christchurch last month. But captain Ben Stokes felt proud after Bethell helped secure a series win on Sunday. The 21-year-old, who usually batted at number four in first-class matches, scored 50 runs in Christchurch and followed it up with an impressive 96 in Wellington, helping England win by 323 runs.
Stokes spoke about Bethell’s batting position during the post-match press conference, saying, “I know people were concerned about him batting at three because he’s young and doesn’t have much experience. But Coach Brendon McCullum and I felt that since he has so much talent, we should let him play under tough conditions. Batting higher gave him confidence, allowing him to perform well in the second match.”
Bethell got his chance to play because wicketkeeper Jamie Smith was unavailable, and his replacement Jordan Cox was injured. As a result, Ollie Pope moved down from number three to keep wicket. Despite this change, it worked out well for Pope, who scored 77 runs in the first test and 66 in the second, helping build strong partnerships with Harry Brook.
The only sad part for Stokes was that Bethell didn’t get his first century at Basin Reserve. Stokes said, “I felt really sorry for him missing out on three figures. I told him, ‘It’s only four runs, right?’ And he replied, ‘Yeah, but it would have been awesome if I hit that shot through the covers to get it.’ Class act!” Stokes believes Bethell has proven himself and shown why everyone rates him so highly.
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