JACOB: MIND ON NOTHING BAR POINTS

BARBADOS-BORN Jacob Bethell views his first World Cup meeting with the West Indies as nothing more than an opportunity to boost England's hopes of reaching the next stage.

- FROM DAVID CHARLESWORTH

Raised on the island until leaving for the UK aged 12 on a cricket scholarship, Bethell admitted he was a little apprehensive about being booed on his return to the Caribbean with England in late 2024.

Instead, dozens of his friends and family turned up to cheer him on at Barbados’ Kensington Oval (bottom), but he is attaching no sentimentality to tomorrow's T20 clash in Mumbai.