For their forthcoming Test tour of New Zealand, England released a 16-man team on Tuesday that featured uncapped spin bowling all-rounder Jacob Bethell. Jamie Smith, a wicketkeeper-batsman, was left out because of paternity leave.
Having made his T20 and ODI debuts against Australia last month, Barbados-born Bethell has only played in 20 first-class games, has a respectable batting average of 25.44, and has yet to score a century in any professional cricket competition.
The lone addition to a Test team that was just defeated 2-1 in a three-match series away to Pakistan is Bethell.
He is now in the Caribbean with the England white-ball side, and after their matches against the West Indies, he, Rehan Ahmed, and Jordan Cox will join the Test team.
Smith will miss the three-match series that begins in Christchurch on November 28 to attend the birth of his first child, thus Cox, the wicketkeeper for Essex, will now get his Test debut.squad for England.
Jordan Cox (wkt), Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, and Ben Stokes (capt).
