Ashes 2025-26: Jacob Bethell comes of age with century for Sydney against Australia

Few young careers are discussed as regularly as Bethell’s.

An under-19 international who moved to the UK from Barbados aged 12 on a cricket scholarship, has been selected for New Zealand’s debut in 2024 despite being a batsman without a professional century to his name.

His first match came against South Africa and white ball in September. He is now the fifth man to score his maiden first-class hundred in a Test for England.

“There’s not much he does that doesn’t look good,” said former England bowler Stephen Finn.

“When he bowls he looks good and when he bowls he looks good. With the bat in his hand, he looks fluent, natural and born to play international cricket.”

He has faced more deliveries in this innings than he has in the entire English summer, having started alongside Indian star Virat Kohli in the Indian Premier League.

There is a world in which Ollie Pope did not reach his century against Zimbabwe at the start of last summer and Bethell played the entire Test series against India before starting this Ashes series as England’s number three.

Instead, a tortured five off 31 balls in the fifth Test against India after months on the sidelines effectively sealed his fate.

Who knows how this series might have ended if England had backed the Bethel-shaped feeling in their gut.

Pope took 15 innings against Australia and did not pass 50. Bethell has one of England’s best hundreds in his second Ashes Test.

“He dropped the ball really well,” Cook said. “Real classy roles.

“Compare that to India when they looked like they didn’t know how to score against India’s top-order bowling and ran across the wicket.

“Here he was able to absorb the pressure and have the confidence that he was going to get those balls.”

Although his place in third place is now secure in England’s post-Ashes future, the road ahead could not be clearer for Bethel.

He will have eight days at home before departing for Sri Lanka and the T20 World Cup.

After that, he is set to return to the Indian Premier League instead of stepping up his red-ball form in April and May.

“He’s learning on the job, which is an incredible effort,” Cook added.

“What we’re seeing now the more we watch him is how he needs to build his career in these roles.”