Cox replacement Bethell will bat at three for England Test debut

Jacob Bethell is set to bat at number three on his Test debut after replacing Jordan Cox as England open their series against New Zealand in Christchurch on Thursday.

The Warwickshire left-hander was called up after wicketkeeper Cox broke his right thumb in the nets during England’s warm-up game.

As such, England’s usual number three, Ollie Pope, will take the role of wicketkeeper and drop down the batting order to number six.

While Bethell has eight ODI caps and seven T20 caps for England, he was a shock choice for the Test squad, but one Joe Root is excited to see.

"The way his game sets up suits Test cricket. I'm really looking forward to watching him go out there and play. It's a really exciting time for him,” Root told BBC Sport.

"I've known him and his family for a long time. I saw him play when he was 11 or 12 years old and I could tell then he was already a very accomplished player.

“It's been really pleasing seeing him grow up, make his way at Warwickshire, then more recently in the white-ball stuff show everyone what a brilliant player he is.

"This is a great opportunity for him, a blank canvas in a position where he can really put influence on the game. He can just go play, enjoy it, and I expect him to do just that."

Test debutant A change at No. 3 Our XI for the first Test against New Zealand in Christchurch is here

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) November 25, 2024

Root himself will become the fourth Englishman to reach 150 tests at fourth in the order, while Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett will open the batting.

England will hope to overturn poor test form, having lost their last series 2-1 in Pakistan. They have been defeated in three of their previous four Tests.

England XI for first Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope (wk), Ben Stokes (c), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir.