Nasser Hussain on Jacob Bethell’s ton at Sydney Ashes Test: ‘Innings of a proper No 3, was calm, composed’

England's Jacob Bethell walks from the field at the close of play during on day four of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo)

With his maiden Test century in the fifth and final Ashes Test at Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday, England batsman Jacob Bethell made a number of records. The 22-year-old became the fourth youngest England cricketer to score his maiden Test century in the last 50 years and joined the list with Alastair Cook (21 years and 66 days), David Gower (21 years and 11 days), Ollie Pope (22 years and 14 days) ahead of him in terms of the record. Bethell, who replaced Ollie Pope at number three in the Boxing Day Test last month, also became the second youngest batter at the age of 22 years and 76 days to record an Ashes hundred in the 21st century after Cook scored a century at Perth in 2006. Former England captain Nasser Hussain has termed Bethell’s innings as ‘the innings of a proper No 3’ and also termed the youngster as ‘more solid’ as compared to Pope.

“This is where he came of age. It was the innings of a proper No 3. It was calm, it was composed, technically sound. The composure for a 22-year-old was just exceptional. For such a good player, Ollie Pope at No 3 often loses balance and jabs at the ball. With Bethell today, he was more solid than I’ve seen Pope be the whole series really. The biggest compliment I can give him was it was the sort of innings you’d expect David Gower to play.”Bowl him a good ball, he’ll defend it; bowl him a bad ball, and he’ll put it away,” Hussain said on the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast.

Bethell was only selected in the England XI after the regular number three Ollie Pope had a mediocre outing in the first three Test matches of the series. Pope scored 125 runs at an average of 20.83 in the first three Tests of the Ashes with his highest score of 46. Like Bethell, England only opted for Josh Tongue in the fourth test with Tongue claiming the man of the match award with his seven-wicket-haul in the Test and becoming the first England player to bag the Player of the Match in Ashes in Australia since 1998.

The last time an England bowler was named Player of Match in an Ashes Test in Australia was when Dean Headley achieved the feat during the fourth Test of The Ashes at Melbourne in 1998. Bethell had made his Test debut against New Zealand in 2024 and had played a knock of 96 runs in the second Test of the series. Bethell then played in the fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India at the Oval before playing his next Test match at Melbourne. Hussain criticised the England team management for not starting with Bethell and Tongue in the series.

“England will regret that the two lads who have played really well here, (Josh) Tongue with the ball and Bethell with the bat, that they didn’t start the series. Bethell is a sort of tick for England, but it’s also a negative for the England hierarchy. They did spot him very early and brought him on the tour of New Zealand [last year]. He got runs, a 96 [in the second Test] where he looked good, but since he hasn’t been playing. He himself admitted to me on interview that he’s not played enough cricket and he got out of form. He looked frenetic against India [at The Oval this summer], batting in the middle order, because he hadn’t been playing. Today, because he played in the last game and now here, he looked really composed. It’s a message to the England side: the only way players reach their high ceiling is by playing, and not enough of their cricketers play enough,” Hussain added.

Bethell also became the sixth England cricketer to score his maiden first class century in a Test match. The 22-year-old’s century was applauded by his parents Graham and Giselle along with his sister Laura at the Sydney Cricket Ground and Bethell later spoke about the moment being a special one. “I gave them a little thumbs up just to acknowledge them. It’s pretty special,” Bethell told reporters.

Hussain also spoke about how Bethell took his time to score the hundred. “It was such a lovely moment, because he took some time to work his way through the 90s – looking composed, as he did all day. His first Test hundred, and obviously his first Ashes hundred, with his mum and dad here at the SCG – one of the great cricket grounds in the world. His mum had a big, beaming smile on her face, and his dad was just trying to hold back the tears. It was an emotional moment and just so special,” said Hussain.