AB de Villiers compared England’s Jacob Bethell to India’s teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in a huge claim. Part of RCB’s setup, Bethell hasn’t featured much for them this season. But due to Phil Salt’s finger injury, Bethell finally got his chance and has opened the innings for RCB in their last four games. He has managed 43 runs at an average of 10.75 and has been striking at 138.71.
Bethell, 22 years of age, is considered to be England’s future and recently found himself at the centre of attention when Alastair Cook suggested he should play county cricket instead of warming the bench for RCB. Cook’s comments were criticised by Kevin Pietersen, who urged Bethell to stay in India, despite not getting enough game time. Pietersen felt that the presence of world-class players would help in his growth.
Sooryavanshi, on the other hand, has been in sensational form for RR. The 15-year-old is currently fifth in the Orange Cap race with 404 runs in 10 matches at an average of 40.40 and a 237.64 strike rate.
‘Reminds me of Sooryavanshi’
Speaking on his YouTube podcast, De Villiers was asked by a fan about Bethell, and he called him a huge talent. “I am pretty sure I have mentioned his name few times. I do agree with you. He’s a wonderful, wonderful player. Plenty of obstacles ahead of him. Reminds me, very different ages actually but both are left-handers, reminds me of Sooryavanshi. Fantastic talent, huge future ahead of them. Bright, bright, bright superstars of the game of cricket but plenty still to learn, plenty of obstacles still to go through,” he said.
“Jacob is not as young as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, but with a similar kind of credentials almost. Superstar talent but plenty still to learn. Once they gain experience over time, I feel those two players will be unstoppable. Hopefully Jacob will stay with RCB, I have no doubt that they will have plans of keeping hold of him for many years to come. I do believe he has got the ability to win plenty of games for RCB in the future,” he added.
RCB acquired Bethell for ₹2.60 crores ahead of the 2025 season. He hogged the limelight with a rapid 55 vs Chennai Super Kings, but also had to leave the tournament early due to England duty. He was retained ahead of IPL 2026, but is behind Salt and Virat Kohli for the opener slot role.
