While Ben Stokes understands the choice to put Jacob Bethell in to bat at number three has raised questions, he has affirmed England's decision-makers know what they are doing.
Bethell is 21 years old and is in line to make his Test debut against New Zealand in Christchurch on Thursday.
A left-hander for Warwickshire, he has never made a century in his senior cricket career and has never batted above number four in his 20 first-class matches.
When asked about the decision to field Bethell higher up the order than most expected, the England captain tried to allay any fears that people may have.
"You can totally understand it, but you've got to be true to yourself when you get given the opportunity to be able to make decisions," he said.
"We've always done what we feel is right for the team. It's gone in our favour quite a lot, so I think we do know what we're doing.
"We're not picking people just to wind people up. We do know what we're doing.
"We do know what we look for, and when you're in a position to make decisions you've got to do it by your standards and your means."
Bethell comes into the Test side having made 15 white-ball appearances, with plenty of excitement around his future.
He was originally due to be the backup batsman in the squad, but following wicketkeeper Jordan Cox's broken thumb, he was thrust into the team.
But Stokes was relaxed about him coming in, explaining that he had full faith in his ability.
"Beth's got the capability to be able to go out there, bat three and hopefully impact the game, like he has done throughout the summer in the white-ball team," he said.
Pretorius stars in Amazon Warriors’ dominant victory over Qalandars in GSL opener
The Guyana Amazon Warriors kicked off the inaugural Global Super League with an emphatic six-wicket victory over the Lahore Qalandars on Tuesday, thrilling their home fans with a clinical all-round performance in Providence. The win, sealed with 12 balls to spare, showcased the Warriors' depth and intent to make a strong statement in this groundbreaking competition.
After winning the toss, Amazon Warriors captain Imran Tahir elected to field first. The decision paid immediate dividends as Tanzim Hasan Sakib claimed the tournament’s first wicket in the second over, trapping Mirza Baig lbw. However, Baig’s opening partner, Adam Rossington, counterattacked with a quick-fire 32, striking two sixes and three boundaries before being caught by Dwaine Pretorius.
Despite Rossington’s early aggression, the Qalandars struggled to maintain momentum as Tahir, Gudakesh Motie, and USA spinner Hassan Khan stifled the scoring with disciplined spells. Tom Abell anchored the innings, but with regular wickets falling, Lahore’s progress remained muted.
The game-changing moment came in the penultimate over when Pretorius, already influential in the field with two catches, delivered a stunning display of death bowling. The South African all-rounder ripped through the Qalandars’ lower order, picking up four wickets in the over, including Abell, Carlos Brathwaite, Asif Afridi, and Faheem Ashraf. Pretorius ended with stellar figures of 4-21, leaving the Qalandars reeling at 121-9.
The collapse was completed in the next over as Salman Mirza was dismissed, setting the Amazon Warriors a modest target of 125.
Shai Hope was steady with 45 from 43 balls
Chasing 125, the Warriors’ innings mirrored the match's earlier stages—steady but with moments of brilliance. Shai Hope, in his typically assured style, anchored the innings with an unbeaten 45 off 43 balls, ensuring the team remained on track despite a few hiccups along the way.
With 17 runs needed from 18 balls, the match hung in the balance until Mirza's final over. However, Keemo Paul provided the fireworks, smashing 20 runs in the over, including a towering six to finish on 27 from just 13 balls. The Warriors cruised home, sending the Providence crowd into jubilation.
Pretorius’ all-round heroics were instrumental in the Warriors’ victory. His four wickets in one over, coupled with two key catches, earned him the Player of the Match award.
The Amazon Warriors’ commanding win sets the tone for the Global Super League, establishing them as early favorites in the competition. With a balanced team featuring star performers in both bowling and batting, they’ve already laid down a marker for the rest of the tournament. The Qalandars, meanwhile, will look to regroup and address their late-innings collapse as they prepare for their next match in this highly anticipated league.
Bellingham 'felt like a scapegoat' for England at Euro 2024
Jude Bellingham feels as though he was made a scapegoat after England lost the final of Euro 2024 to Spain.
The 21-year-old played in every round during the tournament, following a season in which he made 47 appearances for club and country.
Having spearheaded Real Madrid's charge to a LaLiga-Champions League double, Bellingham failed to match those same heights for England in Germany.
Though he feels he came in for extra scrutiny.
"I lost my smile a lot playing for England after the Euros as I felt I was a little mistreated compared to what I contributed," Bellingham told reporters ahead of Real Madrid's game away to Liverpool in the Champions League.
"[The] smile is back [now].
"I think it was a bit harsh on me. I felt a bit like the scapegoat. Maybe I felt a bit sorry for myself.
"I felt I contributed some pretty big moments, but it felt like the whole world was crumbling down on me, especially in the three days after the final. It wasn't a nice feeling."
Bellingham scored two goals during the tournament, the first a winner against Serbia in the group stage and the second a last-minute bicycle kick in the round of 16 to force extra time against Slovakia.
He came in for criticism at Euro 2024 for his apparent refusal to speak to the media, but explained that there were complex reasons for his stance.
"That was reported in a way that made it sound like I think I'm above it, but it's not that at all," he said.
"I had some personal things going on where journalists had gone to see members of my family while I was at the tournament, my grandparents.
"I don't think that's fair, it crosses the line of respect. That's where I took it a little bit personally and decided I would just focus on the football and let that do the talking, instead of talking in the press to people that seemingly don't respect me.
"My family comes first, my nan didn't want to leave her house for the whole summer.
"Maybe I should have communicated that, so people understood my situation. But that was a little bit more personal to me, so that's why I decided to keep my mouth shut."
West Indies used England lessons in Bangladesh victory – Brathwaite
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite praised his team-mates for putting the lessons of their series whitewash by England into action, as they earned a rare home win versus Bangladesh.
The Windies earned their first home Test victory in over two years on Tuesday, with two wickets from Alzarri Joseph helping them wrap up a 201-run triumph.
The best Bangladesh can now hope for from the two-match series is a draw, with West Indies snapping a miserable run of red-ball results.
They were beaten 3-0 by England on their most recent foreign tour in July, before going down 1-0 over two home matches against South Africa in August.
Speaking after the win in Antigua, Brathwaite said: "A lot of learning has taken place from the England tour. Test cricket is all about learning and that's what I tell our guys.
"We have seen a hundred here [from Justin Greaves] and that was a positive. It's good to get a Test win and we continue working hard."
While Joseph finished with figures of 3-69, Jayden Seales and Greaves also dismissed two apiece in Bangladesh's second innings, leading Brathwaite to praise his pace attack.
"It all depends on the surface, but these guys have different skill sets," he said. "We have to stay hungry, that's one.
"Some guys got big fifties, it was good to see but this Test is over. We need to keep at it. The fans' support means a lot. I have seen the guys supporting us not just here but also in the first-class cricket."
Bangladesh captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz also praised his bowlers, in particular six-wicket star Taskin Ahmed, but conceded they did not do enough with the bat.
"Think we bowled really well. Taskin got six wickets but they had a got partnership after they were down seven wickets," Miraz said. "Then the match was lost there.
"We didn't bat well in this match. I think we made a few mistakes but that can happen. We hope to come back strongly in the next match.
"We know what mistakes we made and we need to come back stronger. We will have a chat among ourselves. We have got a pace attack who bowled really well in the first innings. I am really happy with their performance."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
