3 min readMay 6, 2026 07:22 PM IST Jacob Bethell finds himself in the middle of a spat between two of England’s greatest batters without actually uttering a word himself. And surprise, surprise! It’s got to do with the IPL. During the first few weeks of the tournament when the young England left-hander constantly sat on the bench for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, former captain Alastair Cook opined that Bethell would be better served by returning home and playing some county cricket to be in the best position to perform well for England when they play Test cricket next. Bethell famously scored a century in Sydney during the ill-fated Ashes tour. It’s the last Test the team has played. Never the favourite child of the English cricket establishment, Pietersen countered that Bethell would benefit by being around some of the best players in the world and learning from them, even if he was not playing. For good measure, he added that Cook has “absolutely no idea what it’s like to be in the IPL.” That was …