England name Ollie Pope as their number 3 for the first test in what was a two-horse race between him and Bethell.
England name Ollie Pope No. 3 for first Test against India.
In the opening Test match between England and India at Headingley on Friday, Ollie Pope will bat at number three instead of Jacob Bethell.
Following a dismal season, Pope, the vice captain of England, left his job in jeopardy. Furthermore, Bethell’s unexpected rise in New Zealand raised serious questions regarding the No. 3 position. But instead of selecting England’s most promising young player of his generation, Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have chosen to keep Pope.
Two absences, Jamie Smith (paternity leave) and Jordan Cox (thumb injury), forced Pope into action as England’s wicketkeeper, giving Bethell the chance to start at No. 3 in New Zealand. Pope appeared more at ease down at No. 6, but he struck three half-centuries in his first three Test matches, including a second-innings 96 in Wellington.
After Bethell was declared unavailable during the IPL, Pope returned to the No. 3 spot against Zimbabwe last month and scored 171 to strengthen his case for retention. The director of cricket for England, Rob Key, stated on Tuesday that Pope was selected out of “two brilliant options” for one post.
After missing last month’s victory over Zimbabwe due to injuries, Brydon Carse and Chris Woakes will open the bowling for England in the first Test match, which was revealed on Wednesday. Gus Atkinson is still suffering from a hamstring injury, so Josh Tongue and Shoaib Bashir stay in their roles. Captain Stokes rounds out the assault.