“I was pretty nervous” - Jacob Bethell credits IPL for handling pressure during the MCG Test

England top-order batter Jacob Bethell, who batted at No.3 in the just-concluded successful Boxing Day Test against Australia, has credited his IPL stint with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for helping him in handling pressure in front of the MCG crowd.

Notably, more than 160k crowd marked their presence at the venue in two days of the Boxing Day Test as England successfully chased down the 175-run target in the fourth innings to register their first Test win in Australia since 2011.

For the unversed, Bethell played only two games for RCB in IPL 2025, scoring 55 off 33 against Chennai Super Kings in his second appearance at the home venue, M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

“I was pretty nervous. Not so much with the people, just the occasion, I guess. But I’ve played over in India where it feels like there’s 160,000 people watching. This atmosphere was incredible and it was nice to get a win and contribute. The IPL, I only played two games but every game and every occasion… Definitely, just knowing what I’m able to get out of myself when the situation is like that and when the atmosphere is like that,” Bethell told reporters.

“I definitely had a lot more confidence coming into this game after playing in front of, I don’t know, 50,000 – which felt like 100,000 – at the Chinnaswamy,” he added.

Delving into the details of Bethell's Test record, he has played five games, scoring 312 runs at an average of 34.66, accumulating three half-centuries. Also, he has scalped three wickets with the ball in hand.

Bethell’s Test return emerged as one of the shortest Tests of the year, with 20 wickets falling on the first day and 16 on the second day. Interestingly, Cricket Australia is expected to lose INR 60 Crore after the MCG Test concluded in only two days.

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