England all-rounder Jacob Bethell replaced Ollie Pope in the England playing XI after the batter failed to put on a promising show. However, Bethell was left embarrassed by an on-field event where he was spotted in funny underwear.
England lost the series already after their loss at Adelaide; hence, skipper Pat Cummins also did not feature in the playing XI for the Boxing Day Test, and Steve Smith made his return as the stand-in skipper of the Aussies.
England also made some changes in the playing XI, after batter Ollie Pope failed to perform throughout the series, and Gus Atkinson returned to replace Jofra Archer, after the pacer struggled with a side strain and was ruled out of the series.
Jacob Bethell left embarrassed by on-field Ashes goof-up
England youngster Jacob Bethell was picked to bat at no. 3 for the English side. Australia was asked to bat first, and Bethell took the field for England. England’s pacers bowled stunningly and restricted the Australian batters to a score of 152.
During the innings, Bethell, who was fielding near the cover region, slipped up in an attempt to stop a travelling ball, and his pants slipped down. During the incident, the English youngster was spotted wearing Ashes-Trophy-themed underwear.
The incident immediately caught the attention of the fans, and the cameras once again got the spotlight on him during the fourth Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The player was left embarrassed as he immediately smiled as he got up on his feet.
Jacob Bethell played the MCG test after a recent off-field controversy
The recent on-field incident came after Jacob Bethell was found involved in a controversy off the field. Several videos surfaced on social media recently, which marked the young all-rounder dancing with an unidentified woman in a nightclub.
The clips went viral in no time, and the England fans, as well as several former players, looked displeased with his behaviour, especially after England was in such a weak phase, having lost 2 matches in the series already.
Ben Duckett, the English batter, was also seen intoxicated in the same viral video. The English opener, too, drew much criticism for having missed out on runs throughout the series and instead partying in nightclubs and sipping on beer.
England batters continue to struggle despite a valiant effort from the pacers
The English pacer did a remarkable job by dismissing the Australian batters for the score of 152. For the first time in the series, England was so early in the driving seat as Josh Tongue claimed a five-wicket haul. Even Steve Smith, who extended a stunning record at the MCG, was cleaned up by Tongue.
However, the English batters continued their disappointing run as they were bowled out for just 110 runs and handed the Aussies a 42-run lead despite the small total. Michael Neser was the pick of the bowlers with 4 wickets, while Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc also picked up 3 and 2 wickets, respectively.
Harry Brook remained the only English batter to get past the score of 40, and amid many single-digit scorers, Gus Atkinson, with 28, was the second highest for England, followed by skipper Ben Stokes. Jacob Bethell could just manage 1 run on his Ashes debut in Australia.
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