Young England star Jacob Bethell has been named as the captain of the English side for their upcoming T20I series against Ireland.
England are all set to face South Africa and Ireland in back-to-back white-ball series in September. They will first host the Proteas in three ODIs and as many T20Is at home, starting on September 2 and then travel to Ireland for a three-match T20I series, starting September 17 in Dublin.
While new white-ball captain Harry Brook will lead the team in the home series against South Africa, a relatively young side has been picked by the selectors to face Ireland and Bethell has been named as the captain of the young travelling squad.
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On Bethell being appointed as captain for the Ireland series, England men's selector Luke Wright had said in a statement, "Jacob Bethell has impressed with his leadership qualities ever since he has been with the England squads and the series against Ireland will provide him with the opportunity to further develop those skills on the international stage."
What is Jacob Bethell's experience in international cricket?
Since making his T20I debut for England against Australia in September 2024, the batter has earned 13 caps, where he scored 281 runs at an average of 40.41. He has two half-centuries to his name, with 62 not out being his highest score till date.
21-year-old Bethell, who also represented Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League 2025 season, is known to be an explosive batter, however, his lack of experience has raised a few eyebrows. Many have questioned the ECB's decision to hand him the captaincy of the national team at a young age.
However, former England star Rob Key has come to Bethell's defence, as he went on to draw a comparison between the England star and Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal.
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Jacob Bethell compared to Lamine and Sachin Tendulkar
In a chat on Sky Sports podcast, Key said: "Spain played a 16-year-old (Lamine Yamal) in the European Cup Final, you know, like Luke Littler won the World Championship of Darts at 17. You know, Jacob Bethel's 22.
"I find the whole thing fascinating really, the Jacob Bethell debate about the amount of cricket he plays. And I've sort of grown up like you guys have. I always felt, watching or looking at English cricket, English sport at times, that we're unbelievably conservative- you know, like we have to have played so many red-ball games before you can play for England."
The ex-England star further added: "That’s not necessarily the truth when you look at other countries. When you look at someone like David Warner, he played a handful of games before he went and played. Steve Waugh had played something like nine games before he played for Australia. Shane Warne played four games. Sachin Tendulkar, himself, one of the greatest players, played at 16 and had hardly played any first-class cricket."
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England squad for South Africa and Ireland series
For South Africa ODIs: Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jamie Smith
For South Africa T20Is: Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler, Brydon Carse, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Jamie Smith, Luke Wood
For Ireland T20Is: Jacob Bethell (c), Rehan Ahmed, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jos Buttler, Liam Dawson, Tom Hartley, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Matthew Potts, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Luke Wood.