Courtesy: BCCI/IPL/X
Jacob Bethell was the star performer for England in their convincing 238-run win over West Indies in the first ODI of the three-match series at Edgbaston in Birmingham. The all-round effort from Jacob Bethell with the bat, ball, and in the field, was a key factor for England in taking a 1-0 ODI series lead against West Indies, and for that, the 21-year-old was given the player of the match award on Thursday, May 29.
The England batting innings saw left-handed Jacob Bethell score 82 runs off 53 balls with eight fours and five sixes after coming into bat at number six in the batting order. It played a key role in England reaching a massive total of 400/8 in their allotted 50 overs, while the contributions from Ben Duckett, Joe Root, and captain Harry Brook, each getting fifties to their name, can’t be understated either.
In the defence of the 400-run total, England pacers Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, and Brydon Carse were all over the West Indies lineup like a rash before the spin of Adil Rashid and Jacob Bethell got into the game. Bethell, who bowls left-arm orthodox, took the wicket of Jewel Andrew after the West Indies batter had hit a six off him in earlier overs.
Jacob Bethell had no hesitation in crediting Virat Kohli for helping him to improve his game
During the post-match interview after receiving the player of the match award, Jacob Bethell had no hesitation in crediting Virat Kohli for helping him to improve his game while they were teammates at Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He was quoted as saying, “I really found that (IPL) experience very beneficial for my game. I feel like I am a better player now than I was two months before I went to India. Virat Kohli was great with the information and how he goes about his batting.”
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“All I had to do was ask, and he (Virat Kohli) was great with that stuff. Obviously, being a part of that tournament was really special. There is a lot of noise around it so it was great to be a part of it,” Bethell added.
