Jacob Bethell odpowiedział na krytykę dotyczącą braku czasu gry w Indian Premier League, gdy były kapitan Anglii Sir Alastair Cook wezwał go do rozważenia powrotu do county cricket.
Jego wiek -Bethell responded to criticism about his lack of match time at the Indian Premier League as former England captain Sir Alastair Cook called for him to consider a return to county cricket.
Bethell’s century in the final Test at Sydney in January was a belated high point of England’s woeful Ashes tour and he cemented his status as a star in the making with an astonishing 105 in the T20 World Cup semi-final against India in March.
But that remains his most recent competitive innings, having failed to earn a spot in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru team.
He has spent six matches so far at the IPL watching from the sidelines, with head coach Andy Flower preferring England team-mate Phil Salt, Tim David, Romario Shepherd and Josh Hazlewood as his overseas picks.
The 22-year-old is now facing a similar situation to last season, when his IPL stint prevented him from pushing his cause at the start of the domestic campaign and ultimately stopped him from overtaking Ollie Pope in the pecking order until the Ashes had already been lost.
Cook says Bethell should consider returning to play county cricket with Warwickshire, rather than „sitting on his a*** not doing anything” at the Indian Premier League.
Speaking on the latest Sky Sports Cricket Podcast, Bethell said: „I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way to do it.
„I think we’ve seen last year, for me personally, that by not playing cricket for a little while, I came into the end of that India series a bit undercooked, which was a learning for me to take on board.
„But actually, if you look at where I was last year after coming back from the IPL, I was flying, going into that West Indies series and I feel in a similar position now.
„I feel better now than I was a month ago after the World Cup, through just getting time around the guys over here and the pure standard of cricket in India and the IPL.
„It’s something that not many people will understand how cool it is until actually being around a team or the tournament itself when you’re here.
„It just has a completely different feel. It feels like everyone almost ups their game subconsciously without even really knowing because of the calibre of the tournament.
„I feel like that even happens when you’re not on the starting XI or even starting XII as it might be now with the impact player.”
