Why England’s Jacob Bethell Tops Cricket's 21 and under class in 2025.
Beyond the Boyband Looks: England's All-Format Banker.
Finally, you say!
I wrote at the beginning of April that I planned to write a series of posts exploring the best (subjective) cricketers by age in 2025. I said, "The series would explore the spread of talent across the different age brackets, hoping it would show how some players develop quicker than others and how different countries manage their lists trying to avoid talent vacuums. Also, the age-old conundrum of how long successful players should play, weighing immediate success against long-term sustainability."
*Please note I am only looking at International (INT) cricket. So, Tests, ODIs, and T20Is.* No franchise cricket. I plan to do this in a separate series.
You will also have access to the stats via a Google Sheets link. (On the sheet, I placed a filter on the format column (column F) so it defaults to combined games. Thanks to my colleague, Prateek Patil, who helped connect me with Rajesh and Vijay at Kadamba Technologies, who are kindly providing the data.
SpeakingCricket is made possible by your subscriptions. If you're still a free subscriber, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. Your support truly makes a difference.
So, WHO IS The Best International player (male) aged 21 and under in 2025.
It surprised me that only 13 players were currently playing INT cricket in 2025, aged 21 and under:
Cooper Connolly, Sam Konstas - (AUS), Jacob Bethell, Josh Hull, Rehan Ahmed, Shoaib Bashir - (ENG), Arafat Minhas, Faisal Akram, Jahandad Khan - (PAK), Andile Simelane, Kwena Maphaka - (SA), Shevon Daniel (SRL), and Jewel Andrew (WI).
By country: England dominate the list for games played.
Shoaib Bashir has only played Test cricket. 16 Tests, 11 more than England teammate, Rehan Ahmed. In part, the exaggerated volume can be attributed to England's top-heavy schedule in this World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. Combining all formats (Tests, ODI's, and T20I)—Jacob Bethell and Ahmed top the list with 23 and 21 matches respectively. And, looking at the total matches (Tests, ODIs, and T20Is) played by country, England sits comfortably on top with 61. Somewhat surprisingly, powerhouses India and Australia only have nine combined—that's with India contributing zero!
Focusing on Test cricket, Shoaib Bashir leads the troupe with 16 Test appearances, significantly ahead of teammate Rehan Ahmed's five.
Bashir's (21) rapid rise from Somerset's second XI to England's frontline finger spinner highlights cricket's willingness to surprise.
In early 2024, aged 20 and with just 10 first-class wickets in the bank, England included Bashir in their squad to tour India. Many critics pointed to a threadbare record, predictable action, and the enormity of bowling spin in India. Even in an era of bold selections under Ben Stokes, Rob Key, and Brendon McCullum, Bashir's elevation caused concerned ripples. Now—in June 2025—from 16 Tests, Bashir has 58 wickets with an average in the mid-thirties. His economy rate sits at 3.8, and his strike rate is close to a wicket every six overs. Bashir claimed Rohit Sharma as his first Test scalp. He’s going nicely.
At first glance, you could easily mistake Bashir for Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Both comfortably fit the mould of a benign, woke-like off-spinner who plays cricket to delay their entry into the corporate world.
Joking aside, England's leadership deserves credit for seeing something beyond a tall twirler with reasonable drift to his stock ball. Paradoxically, visiting teams to India are continually looking to extract bounce, whereas the hosts prefer the opposite in their spinners. It will be fascinating to watch how Australia receives Bashir, bounce and all, in the upcoming Ashes.
Jacob Bethell (21) announced himself internationally with a dominant 20-run over against Australia's Adam Zampa in Cardiff, followed by three unbeaten half-centuries in the Caribbean before earning Test selection. Born in Barbados, Bethell moved to England at 13 on a Rugby School scholarship, and later signed with Warwickshire aged 17, and starred in England U19's World Cup final run in 2022, and his breakthrough 2024 season earned international call-ups and T20 franchise deals with Melbourne Renegades, Paarl Royals, and Royal Challengers Bangalore.
They say looks can be deceiving. Bethell, at first glance, looks nothing like a Google CEO—instead, with his boyband looks and Caribbean background, he might be typecast as a free spirit who might not conform to orthodoxy. Yet, I have it from reliable sources at the Melbourne Renegades that Bethell is meticulous in his preparation to the point of journaling daily.
England values Bethell as a generational player in all formats, even if his career is still in its infancy. Unfortunately for him, he missed the one-off Test against Zimbabwe due to his IPL commitments, allowing Ollie Pope to bat three, and he duly dipped his bread with an assured 170-odd. England's squad for the first Test against India includes Bethell, so the selectors will have to make a difficult call. Leave Pope in, or back the youngster.
Conclusion
Of the rest, Sam Konstas rates a mention just courtesy of his arrival during the Boxing Day Test at the MCG, where he went from park cricket novice to Jasprit Bumrah slayer. All eyes will be on Konstas in the WTC final and the Ashes beyond—did England's Test cricket pivot force Australia's hand? We will see.
South Africa has a real talent in Kwena Maphaka, who is the youngest of the group. Maphaka will miss the upcoming WTC final, with Lungi Ngidi returning.
The Verdict
After weighting the performances, potential, and impact across all formats, Jacob Bethell stands out as the best international player aged 21 and under in 2025.
His versatility across 23 international matches, impressive Test average of 52.00, and ability to dominate established opposition set him apart. Behind the boyband looks lurks a methodical professional whose meticulous preparation and all-format adaptability suggest England's faith in him as a "generational talent" is well-placed.
Honourable mention goes to Shoaib Bashir, who has made an impressive start to his Test career. He will have a lot of work to do from now until the New Year's Test at the SCG.
Here’s the link to the Google sheet again. I will update as we go through the series. Once again, thank you for being here. And please post a comment if you have a strong viewpoint.
Best,
I think Bethell will play at Headingley. He has a higher ceiling than Pope and I reckon they know it. Stokes said as much before backtracking a bit. It’s a bit harsh on Pope but the selectors are there to make tough calls.