London, 26 November (Hindustan Reporter). Jacob Bethell will make his Test debut for England at number 3 in the first Test against New Zealand at the Hagley Oval on Thursday, although he has never played that role in first-class cricket.
The batting order has been shuffled after Jordan Cox, who was due to make his debut due to Jamie Smith being ruled out of the tour on paternity leave, suffered a thumb injury, allowing Warwickshire middle-order batsman Ollie Pope to keep wickets. Will come on first drop for. Joe Root will remain at number 4 in his 150th match.
Bethel’s selection to a position of such responsibility reflects the respect the selectors had for his talent. He made his T20 and ODI debuts against Australia at the end of the home summer, and impressed the Caribbean side by scoring three half-centuries in both formats on that white-ball tour. After this, he joined Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL on Monday in a deal worth Rs 2.6 crore.
Bethel reached New Zealand on Sunday after taking leave at home after the West Indies series. As a result, he played no part in the two-day practice match against the New Zealand Prime Minister’s XI.
England’s playing XI for the first Test: Jack Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethel, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope (wicket-keeper), Ben Stokes (captain), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir.
