Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook wants Jacob Bethell to return from his stint with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) and play the County Championship.
Bethell is yet to make a single appearance for the defending champions this season, with the RCB management firm on using Phil Salt, Tim David, Romario Shepherd and Josh Hazlewood as their four overseas players.
Cook has claimed that Bethell is a good enough batter to open for England in the upcoming home Test series against New Zealand and Pakistan this summer. The 41-year-old has instead recommended the left-handed batter to come back to the country and represent Warwickshire in the County Championship as an opener.
“For that top order batting, the way he played at Sydney, against that attack, in those conditions…I’ve looked at a player there, and I’m certain this bloke can open. If he can bat three, he can open. (But) it’s not ideal, is it? Bethell shouldn’t really be it because he’s not opening. He’s sitting on his arse at the IPL, not doing anything. Ideally, he could come back and open for Warwickshire to help England,” Cook said on The Overlap Stick to Cricket podcast.
Following the recent disappointment at the 2025-26 Ashes, where England lost 4-1, the management are expected to make wholesale changes to the side. This has made opener Zak Crawley’s place in the side vulnerable, with a host of names touted to be his replacement. Cook wants Bethell to move up from number three to open the innings after he scored 154 against Australia in the fifth Ashes Test match in Sydney.
It is worth mentioning that Bethell’s stint with RCB coincided with England’s Test match against Zimbabwe last summer. He missed the game and had to wait till the fifth Test match against India at the Oval to play his first five-day game of the summer.
Brook, Bethell get warnings for misconduct in Wellington
Bethell is currently one of England’s best all-format batters. The 22-year-old has an international century in all three formats of the game. This included scoring 105 off just 48 balls against eventual champions India in the T20 World Cup semi-finals in Mumbai.
