Jacob Bethell ‘has done himself world of good’ – Ben Stokes hints at Test recall

Ben Stokes has dropped a heavy hint that Jacob Bethell will reclaim his England Test spot next month – news that could put Ollie Pope or Zak Crawley in the firing line.

Bethell will be 4,500 miles away when England line up against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge on Thursday, having been cleared to remain at the Indian Premier League with Royal Challengers Bangalore.

But the strong impression the 21-year-old made in his debut series against New Zealand before Christmas, when he batted with fearlessness and verve in an unfamiliar position at number three, has not worn off.

That means he has a decent chance of dropping back into the side for the five-match series against India, cranking up the pressure on Crawley and Pope.

Both men have been first-choice players throughout the ‘Bazball’ era but have endured big swings in form and crunch time could be imminent.

Crawley averaged just 8.66 in New Zealand and has had mixed returns for Kent in Division Two of the Rothesay County Championship, while vice-captain Pope has struggled to become a consistent performer in the pivotal number three position.

The pair will be desperate to shut down any further scrutiny with commanding showings against Zimbabwe, but Stokes’ endorsement of Bethell suggested they may be fighting over one place.

“We picked the squad for Zimbabwe under the impression Beth would be away, so it wasn’t too much of an issue for us… but who knows what happens in the summer going forwards?” Stokes said.

“If you’re smart enough, (looking at) the series that Beth had out in New Zealand, and obviously he’s going to be back in the UK for that India series… so I think you put two and two together and you probably know what’s going to happen.

“If you talk about nailing down a position, Beth has done himself the world of good by the performances he put in there to be part of our plans going forward. It’s great to have a versatile player such as Beth at your disposal.”

Whichever way the selection dilemma goes between the three, it will fall to head coach Brendon McCullum or managing director Rob Key to relay the decision.

“I don’t do the good news, I don’t do the bad news,” Stokes said.

“All those conversations go on with Keysy and Baz. That stems back to how I wanted that kind of role within my captaincy to be. I’ve got to focus on the group and the 11 guys on the field.”

Another factor in Bethell’s favour is his ability to bowl left-arm spin, something England are known to value and which neither Pope nor Crawley can match.

England’s number one slow bowler, Shoaib Bashir, has endured a difficult start to the summer. He was sent out on loan by Somerset to Glamorgan and has struggled to make an impact, chipping in just two wickets at 152 runs apiece with the Welsh side.

“It’s such a tricky one with Bash,” Stokes said.

“I rang him a while ago and said, ‘Look, I know it can be tough when you’re an England spinner and then you’re getting loaned out to play’.

“It’s not obviously ideal. But I said, ‘If you take where you were last year, you weren’t even playing’. He’s learning on the job, as we constantly say.”