Michael Atherton directly attacks Nasser Hussain over IPL stance on Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli

Former England cricketer Michael Atherton took a dig at his former teammate Nasser Hussain while discussing the England vs India five-Test match series.

Jacobb Bethell was the talking point in the discussion because of his unavailability in the Test series against Zimbabwe due to a clash with the Indian Premier League (IPL), as he was playing with RCB.

Read also: Gautam Gambhir's 'mid-series axing' warning led to Virat Kohli's Test retirement, claims ex-ENG star

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Michael Atherton takes shots at Nasser Hussain

Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain were discussing the importance of Jacob Bethell in the England Test squad. Hussain was wondering how will English team would fit Bethell in the playing XI.

Atherton took a dig at Hussain as he was arguing that Bethell was learning in the IPL rather than playing an International Test match for his nation.

Hussain had argued with Atherton at that time by backing Bethell and saying that he was learning a lot in the IPL with Virat Kohli. Atherton also mocked Hussain by saying that Hussain has a billion followers in India, and that's why he was supporting Bethell to stay in India.

“I take you back to three podcasts, when we were talking about what the team should be for the Zimbabwe Test match. I said, bring him back from the IPL. It's an international match. He's a centrally contracted player, bring him back from the IPL. I'm not saying it in hindsight here. That's exactly what I would've done,” Atherton stated.

“You will argue because you've got a billion followers in India that you'd like to keep on the right side of. He's learning a lot in IPL, he's learning a lot with Virat Kohli. He was no doubt having breakfast with Virat Kohli... great! But when it's time to play, come play as a centrally contracted player,” Atherton added.

Jacob Bethell opens with Virat Kohli

Jacob Bethell didn’t get many opportunities from the RCB camp as he played just two matches in the IPL 2025. RCB’s regular opener Phil Salt was ruled out midway due to fever, and his teammate Bethell replaced him in the playing XI.

Jacob Bethell opened the innings with Virat Kohli in two matches and played a match-winning inning against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as he scored 55 runs in just 33 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell left IPL

The English player rejoined the tournament after suspension, but RCB didn’t play him in the last two league stage matches, as Salt was available to play.

Jacob Bethell was named in the white-ball series against the West Indies, and before the playoffs, Bethell left India and joined his national side to take on the Caribbean side in the ODI format.