Michael Vaughan Tells Jacob Bethell To Leave RCB Camp And Return To England

Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes Jacob Bethell should return and focus on fitness ahead of England’s June 4 Test.

Michael Vaughan has advised Jacob Bethell to leave the Royal Challengers Bengaluru camp and return to England if his finger injury keeps him out of IPL 2026 action. Vaughan made the remark after Bethell missed RCB’s match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday.

RCB captain Rajat Patidar confirmed Bethell suffered a finger injury, while Venkatesh Iyer opened alongside Virat Kohli despite Phil Salt returning to the squad.

READ ALSO | KKR Star Angkrish Raghuvanshi Ruled Out of IPL 2026 After Injury Blow

Vaughan said England’s training camp starts next week before the June 4 Test against New Zealand national cricket team. He feels Bethell should return to the UK for medical assessment if he is unlikely to feature regularly for RCB. Vaughan also stated that the youngster already gained valuable IPL experience over the last 2 seasons and should now focus on England duties.

“If Jacob Bethel’s injured, he should be on the next plane home to England. England plays a Test match on June 4th, making sure that you know, England has a look at him before potentially, to see if he is fit or not going to be fit for the Test match against New Zealand. I would think he’s better off back in the UK, just getting assessed,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.

“I’m being a bit old school, I guess they’ll say he’s got to stay till the end, but if he’s not going to play for Royal Challengers Bangalore, England have got a training camp this next week. He should be back home in the UK. You know I’m a big believer in the IPL. If you’re going to play, it grows your game massively. And obviously, when you’re a young player in the dressing room with lights, I completely get it,” he continued.

“But at this stage, last year he did it, so he learned a lot last year. This year, he’s done it, he’s played a little bit, and not had a huge amount of success. But if he is injured, England has a training camp this week. Baz McCullum arrives in the UK on Sunday morning. I think the training camp starts Monday. He should be back in the UK with the team,” Vaughan added.

Notably, Bethell endured a difficult IPL 2026 campaign with Royal Challengers Bengaluru before injury sidelined him. The young all-rounder scored 108 runs in 7 matches and managed a highest score of 27 against Mumbai Indians.

READ ALSO | Mohammad Kaif Calls Shubman Gill IPL 2026’s ‘Best Captain’ After GT Seal Playoffs

Bethell batted in 7 innings at a strike rate of 124.68 but struggled to convert starts into big scores. Despite arriving with strong international form, the left-hander could not cement a regular role in the RCB batting order throughout the season. The England youngster also failed to bowl a single over during the tournament, though he contributed with 4 catches in the field.