England all-rounder Jacob Bethell has been ruled out of the white-ball tour of Australia after suffering a setback in his right knee during training in Perth. The England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed on Wednesday that the 23-year-old will fly back to the UK on Saturday to see a specialist, putting his availability for next month’s Test series in South Africa in doubt.
“Jacob Bethell has been ruled out of the white-ball tour of Australia following a scan on his right knee. Bethell suffered a setback in his return from the injury during a training session in Perth earlier this week,” the ECB said in a statement reported by Hindustan Times. The board added that with a busy winter schedule ahead, he will return home on Saturday for further assessment by his specialist.
Bethell sat out last weekend’s warm-up match at the WACA, and The Guardian reported that early fitness work on tour left him with swelling in the same right knee he had operated on earlier this year. Scan results were sent back to his specialist in the UK. He watched from the sidelines as a bystander during England’s training session at Optus Stadium on Wednesday and will remain with the squad until they leave for Adelaide at the weekend.
Squad replacements and lineup impact
Bethell was never expected to be fit for the three-match one-day international series starting in Perth on Friday, though team management had hoped he would return for the five Twenty20 internationals that follow. His exit leaves England without a left-handed batter and left-arm spinner across all eight white-ball matches in Australia, while giving Tom Banton the chance to continue opening the batting in the 50-over side.
His departure compounds England’s injury troubles after fast bowler Josh Tongue was ruled out of the tour last week with a toe problem. To cover the absences, uncapped Sussex all-rounder James Coles and uncapped Hampshire seamer Eddie Jack—both already named in the senior T20 squad—are flying in early from the England Lions series in the Caribbean. Cricket.com.au reported that the pair will arrive in Perth on Thursday, while the Press Association via Birmingham Now reported they are traveling “in time for the second and third ODIs.”
Teammate Joe Root offered his support after learning of the flare-up. “Hopefully it’s not too serious and he’s not out for too long,” Root said, as reported by Newscord.
Six series missed since July
As background, Bethell has not played competitive cricket since the third ODI against India at Lord’s in July. He was diagnosed with a chondral defect, which is cartilage damage in his right knee, and underwent surgery that The Guardian dated to the end of August and Reuters placed in September. In an earlier interview with The Mail on Sunday cited by WION, Bethell said he originally expected the layoff to last only three or four weeks before he could get back on his feet.
Instead, the injury has now forced him out of six consecutive series across all formats since he scored 154 in the final Ashes Test against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground earlier in 2026. His time on the sidelines has covered Birmingham Phoenix’s campaign in The Hundred, the home Test series against Pakistan that England won 3-0, white-ball series against Sri Lanka, an away ODI tri-series in Pakistan, and the current trip to Australia. During his earlier absence from the Test setup, England recalled Ollie Pope as a spare batter and brought Emilio Gay and Jordan Cox into the starting side against Pakistan.
The race for the South Africa Tests
On Monday, selectors named Bethell in England’s squad for the three-Test tour of South Africa, which opens on Dec. 17. According to The Guardian, his chances of making the starting lineup for the first Test may depend on whether he recovers in time to play in England’s single warm-up match in Durban a week earlier, or whether he can get match practice with the England Lions when the second-string side travels to South Africa this month for three 50-over games and two first-class matches. If he doesn’t recover in time, Gay and Cox could keep their places in the Test lineup.
England begins its three-match ODI series against Australia at Optus Stadium in Perth on Friday, Nov. 13, before Bethell flies back to the UK on Saturday to meet with his knee specialist.