“I remember having two references on my desk – one from Sir Garry Sobers and the other, I can’t recall whether it was [Desmond] Haynes or [Gordon] Greenidge, but it was definitely one of them,” laughs Michael Powell.
The former Warwickshire batter was director of cricket at Rugby School when Jacob Bethell’s application arrived on his desk. Unsurprisingly, given the names involved, it didn’t take him long to realise he had someone extraordinary coming his way from Barbados. And then he saw him play.
“I’ve known him since he was an 11-year-old, and I might be slightly old school but having watched him for all that time, I’ve always seen him as a Test player,” says Powell, no doubt pleased that England’s hierarchy appear to agree with that assessment, given Bethell’s Test call-up for the tour of New Zealand last week.
“He has fantastic hands. He has got a rhythmical swing of the bat, and that’s born out of him hitting balls in his backyard on the end of a rope swing for hours and hours. It’s ingrained in him. The moment I saw him I just thought, ‘you’ve been born with a bat in your hand, it’s in your blood’. He has grown up with that great West Indian heritage, and wanting to emulate [Brian] Lara and co.”
Bethell, who grew up in Barbados before gaining a cricket scholarship at the age of 12, is very much at the vanguard of the next generation of players in this new England era.
Given his versatility with the ball, alongside his skill with bat in hand, he could be a fixture across all formats for the next decade and beyond.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 06, 2024 من The Independent.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 06, 2024 من The Independent.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
'Last thing I saw was that half of Syria was liberated'
Former Olympic swimmer Yusra Mardini speaks candidly to Jack Rathborn about her country's future after the dramatic removal of the dictator Bashar al-Assad earlier this month
The 30 medal sports legend you may not have heard of
A Paralympic veteran, Sarah Storey tells Luke Baker why we struggle to celebrate para-athletes doing incredible things
Haaland's spot-kick sums up limp and lifeless City
So, no Christmas miracle for the man christened Josep. Instead, his new normal continued.
Gakpo emerges as Reds' latest game-changing star
Liverpool are accustomed to singing about walking through the storm.
Labour won't kill the British pub - but some will still die
The institution is safe for the time being but Budget tax hikes will affect those that are already struggling
China greenlight 'world's biggest' hydro dam in Tibet.despite flooding concerns
China has approved the construction of the world's largest hydropower dam on the eastern rim of the Tibetan plateau despite protests over its ecological impact and concerns it could affect millions of people downstream in India and Bangladesh.
Asia marks 20 years since.tragic Boxing Day tsunami
One of world's worst natural disasters claimed 228.000 lives
Israel confirms attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen
Israel's military has confirmed that it struck multiple targets linked to the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen yesterday, including Sanaa International Airport and three ports along the western coast.
Syria's rebels planned years ahead for life after Assad
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham commanders talk to Bel Trew about the planning and military innovations that brought them victory
Moscow 'foiled' multiple Ukraine assassination plots
Russia has claimed it has foiled several Ukrainian plots to assassinate senior officers and their families using bombs disguised as power banks or document folders.
