Jacob Bethell to open batting in England vs India first ODI at Edgbaston as hosts name team ahead of series opener | Cricket News
Jacob Bethell will open the batting for England in their opening one-day international against India at Edgbaston on Tuesday.
Bethell will partner Ben Duckett at the top of the order, who along with Joe Root are the only two new faces from the team that secured a 4-0 T20 series win over the same opponents on Saturday.
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Highlights from the fifth T20 international between England and India in Southampton as the hosts romped to a 4-0 series win to top the world rankings
Duckett comes in for Phil Salt while Root replaces Tom Banton. The bowling attack again consists of Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue as the pace-bowling options, with three spinners included in Adil Rashid, Liam Dawson and Will Jacks, who fills one of the all-rounder roles alongside left-arm seamer Sam Curran.
Jos Buttler will make his 200th ODI appearance for England in the series opener against India on Tuesday
Jos Buttler is set to make his 200th ODI appearance for England in the series opener, with Harry Brook again captaining the team.
England team to face India, first ODI: Jacob Bethell, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Harry Brook (c), Jos Buttler (wkt), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jofra Archer, Liam Dawson, Josh Tongue, Adil Rashid.
Bethell’s opportunity up top | ‘That’s where he wants to bat’
Speaking on the latest Sky Sports Cricket Podcast, Dinesh Karthik – part of the coaching set up with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Bethell’s team in the IPL – backed his move to opener.
“Bethell genuinely wants to be at the top of the innings,” Karthik said. “In white-ball cricket he prefers opening.
“In the ODIs we will see him opening and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him opening in The Hundred. That’s where he prefers to bat.
“It’s something that he’s not alien to, it’s something that he wants to embrace, so here is his opportunity. He’s a good player and I see him having a good time up top.”
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Highlights from the second T20 international between England and India at Old Trafford as Jacob Bethell starred with the bat
Though England’s thumping 4-0 series win in the T20s took them top of the world rankings in that format, they currently sit a lowly eighth in ODIs, below Afghanistan – and with India top.
As to why England struggle to replicate their T20 form in 50-over cricket, Karthik said: “I think it’s attention span and concentration.
“You have 30 overs of dead time between overs 11 and 40 where all you’re expected to do is try and rotate strike and hit the odd boundary – and I don’t think the T20 players are sometimes able to adapt to that.
“It can be a challenging mentally when you are just taking singles. In T20 cricket they are looking to hit a boundary every ball and now, suddenly, they have to drop two or three gears and say ‘no, a boundary is not required, let me just knock it round’.
“Also, earlier starts during the day basically mean the pitches could have some life in them and that players need to deal with the moving ball – that has also been a challenge to a lot of the top order T20 players.”
McCullum ‘sorry’ after Test sacking but committed to white-ball job
Tuesday’s ODI between England and India will mark Brendon McCullum’s first in charge of solely the white-ball side following his dismissal as head coach of the Test team.
The New Zealander reiterated his commitment to winning silverware in the shorter formats, with the 50-over World Cup approaching in 2027.
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Brendon McCullum gives his thoughts after being sacked from his role as head coach of the England Test side
“I was disappointed initially but at the same time, it’s a results business,” McCullum said on Sky Sports News.
“We didn’t get the results we wanted, and I’ll wear that. Fundamentally, it was a tap on the shoulder, and you crack on.
“I’ve loved my time with the Test team over the past four years – it’s been one of the most enjoyable periods I’ve had in the 20-odd years on the cricketing circuit.
“I’m disappointed for all the fans that we couldn’t get the results that everyone wanted, and I’m sorry for that.
“But at the same time I’ve got an immense amount of enthusiasm and energy for the white-ball job, and looking forward to getting us where we want to get to, which is to win trophies.”
England vs India results and fixtures
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