Jacob Bethell is poised to make history as England’s youngest men’s international cricket captain after being named on 15 August to lead the side in next month’s T20 series against Ireland.
The 21-year-old Warwickshire all-rounder, widely regarded as one of the country’s brightest prospects, will captain England in the three-match series in Dublin from 17 to 21 September, part of preparations for the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
Bethell has yet to score a professional century in any format, but his appointment will see him surpass the record set by Monty Bowden, who was 23 years and 144 days old when he captained England in a Test against South Africa in Cape Town in 1889.
Since his T20 debut in September last year, Bethell has become a white-ball regular, making 13 T20 appearances and 12 ODIs, alongside four Test caps. His most recent outing came in the fifth Test against India at the Oval earlier this month, where he replaced injured red-ball skipper Ben Stokes but managed only scores of six and five, without taking a wicket.
England selector Luke Wright praised Bethell’s “leadership qualities,” adding that the Ireland series would allow him to “further develop those skills on the international stage.”
However, former captain Michael Vaughan criticised the decision to field Bethell in such a high-stakes Test with limited first-class experience this season, calling it “diabolical.”
Bethell’s elevation comes as regular white-ball captain Harry Brook is rested following the South Africa series. Ben Duckett, Jamie Smith, Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse will also sit out the Ireland matches ahead of the upcoming Ashes series.
Fast bowlers Mark Wood and Gus Atkinson are absent from all squads to prepare for the Australia tour, with the first Test starting in Perth on 21 November. Uncapped seamer Sonny Baker has been called up.
England squads
ODI v South Africa
Harry Brook (capt), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler (wkt), Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wkt)
T20 v South Africa
Brook (capt), Ahmed, Archer, Banton, Bethell, Carse, Liam Dawson, Duckett, Jacks, Mahmood, Overton, Rashid, Phil Salt (wkt), Smith (wkt), Luke Wood
T20 v Ireland
Bethell (capt), Ahmed, Baker, Banton, Buttler, Dawson, Tom Hartley, Jacks, Mahmood, Overton, Matthew Potts, Rashid, Salt (wkt), Wood
Fixtures
ODIs v South Africa
2 September – Headingley, Leeds
4 September – Lord’s, London
7 September – Rose Bowl, Southampton (1000 GMT)
T20s v South Africa
10 September – Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
12 September – Old Trafford, Manchester
14 September – Trent Bridge, Nottingham (1330 GMT)
T20s v Ireland
17 September – 1st T20
19 September – 2nd T20
21 September – 3rd T20