Brook made the perfect start as England romped to a massive 238-run defeat of West Indies in his first game as permanent ODI captain at Edgbaston.
Bethell top-scored with a brilliant 82 off 53 balls, while Brook himself added 58 off 45 as England posted 400-8, with the visitors only managing 162 all out in reply.
- Scorecard: England vs West Indies, first ODI
- England men’s cricket results and fixtures 2025
- Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with NOW
- Choose the Sky Sports push notifications you want!
Brilliant Bethell stars for England
Barbados-born Bethell hit eight boundaries and five sixes in his 53-ball knock as he highlighted the aggression England want to play with going forward.
In the 42nd over, Bethell brought up his third ODI half-century, and by the 47th the 21-year-old was already on 73 before falling to Jayden Seales (4-84).
“Batting at six, the challenge it poses all the time is how selfless you can be to try and calculate what the game needs here and now. He did it to absolute perfection,” said Sky Sports’ Eoin Morgan.
“He has power to work with, he is poised, and has a lot of class at that. He’s 21 years old, so the ability and experience he shows at the big moments of the game – which is exactly where he found himself – the world is his oyster.
“He batted at three in the Test match, he can bat up and down the order in ODIs. Moeen Ali did that position for many years. Guys like Mike Hussey and Yuvraj Singh are probably the very best to do it, but that [from Bethell] is as good as you get.”
Bethell, who hit three half-centuries batting at No 3 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, said he learnt from Indian great Virat Kohli during his time in the Indian Premier League.
“I learnt a lot from the IPL, I feel like a better player because of that experience than I was two months ago. Virat was great with information and how he goes about batting. All I had to do was ask him,” Bethell, who was awarded player of the match, said.
“I enjoy batting in the middle order. Today was a pretty easy situation to come in to when I came in to bat.
“It was about not losing a cluster of wickets.
“I think when I back myself when I’m in I can get a lot of balls to the boundary so I’m not too fussed about dot balls. I try to hit strong shots and get off to a strong start.”
England show strength in fielding
Skipper Brook led from the front when it came to England’s fielding, taking five catches as well as hitting 58 off 45 balls with the bat.
“That was a phenomenal performance from the boys,” Brook said.
“There were four of us that got 50+ scores, if one of us kicked on from there, that [would have been] a pretty complete performance.
“We’ve got so much power, [Jamie] Smith put them under an immense amount of pressure in the powerplay and that set the tempo beautifully.
“That allowed people lower down the order to try and hit it out the park. The tempo of our innings was spot on.”
Brook was not the only one who showed his athletic capabilities in the field. Brydon Carse took a spectacular ‘Stokes-esque’ catch to dismiss West Indies skipper Shai Hope (25) as well as finishing with figures of 1-18.
Speaking at his press conference on Wednesday, Brook – who revealed he has not decided on a vice-captain as of yet – said: “It’s a new era and hopefully we can bring a lot of energy, competitiveness and lot of fun out there.” And his first ODI in permanent charge showed a commitment to that statement.
Are England guilty of not kicking on?
Despite all of England’s top-order making significant contributions to their score, no player went on to reach a century.
Jamie Smith, who was opening the batting for the first time, scored 37, while Ben Duckett (60) and Joe Root (57) were the two other players to hit half-centuries.
Jamie Overton (1) was the only player to get out in single figures lower down the order, but by then England had already amassed a commanding total.
However, Bethell, who is yet to score an ODI century, showed very promising signs with the bat and does not look far off reaching that milestone.
England vs West Indies white-ball fixtures
One-day international series at home to West Indies (May-June)
- First ODI, Edgbaston: England won by 238 runs
- Second ODI: Sunday June 1 (11am) – Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
- Third ODI: Tuesday June 3 (1pm) – The Kia Oval, London
T20 international series at home to West Indies (June)
- First T20: Friday June 6 (6.30pm) – Seat Unique Riverside, Chester-le-Street
- Second T20: Sunday June 8 (2.30pm) – Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol
- Third T20: Tuesday June 10 (6.30pm) – Utilita Bowl, Southampton
Watch England’s second one-day international against West Indies live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from 10.30am on Sunday June 1 (11am first ball). Stream cricket with NOW
