"You Realise You're...": England Star, Signed By RCB, On Meeting Virat Kohli For 1st Time

After struggling to get going in the recently-concluded five-match T20I series, young England all-rounder Jacob Bethell gave a good account of himself in the ODI-opener against India in Nagpur. The 21-year-old hit a half-century on Thursday, and also grabbed the prized scalp of Shreyas Iyer. Bethell will be heading to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy later this month, before returning to India in March to get his first taste of the Indian Premier League. For the unversed, Bethell was picked up by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for Rs 2.2 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction.

Speaking after the first ODI, Bethell said he looks forward to joining the franchise, and revealed all the love he has been receiving from RCB fans ever since his signing.

"RCB is a great franchise, and I've felt the love over here. Every ground I've been to, as soon as I walk onto the pitch, they start chanting: RCB, RCB. There's definitely a lot of support," Bethell told Daily Mail.

After meeting Kohli for the first time recently, Bethell opened up on the opportunity to play alongside the former RCB captain. "To play along with the likes of players like that would be really cool," he added.

Bethell considers himself as a proper all-rounder, and could come in handy for both England and RCB over the next three months or so.

"As soon as you play against someone, you realise you're playing the same game and they can make the same mistakes you can. It's just that those guys obviously got a lot better at not making the mistakes," Bethell explained.

"I see myself as a genuine all-rounder. Whenever I get the chance to bowl and state my claim, and put us in a good position, I will. It's a massive part of my package."

England captain Jos Buttler was full