young England Jacob Bethell he opened about the unforgettable experience of opening the bat alongside Virat Kohli at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium during his stint with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), describing the atmosphere as unlike anything he had experienced before.Bethell, who joined RCB after being signed in the IPL 2025 mega auction, shared the path with Kohli during the franchise’s back-to-back title-winning campaigns in 2025 and 2026. Although the young all-rounder has had a mixed season with the bat, he said the opportunity to walk alongside one of the greats of the modern game is a highlight.
“I remember being nervous”
Speaking on the Super Over podcast on YouTube, Bethell admitted he was overcome with nerves ahead of his first home appearance in Bengaluru.“It was crazy. I remember being really nervous before. It was just my first game in front of the home fans. I was nervous to say the least. But when I got to the ground, I just felt a sense of excitement. I ran drinks for a lot of the competition. Looking at the atmosphere and wanting to take a piece,” said Jacob Bethell. “We are going out to bat. I can only think to myself … the place has bounced, there is no gap in it. He feels that I am on top of you. Fortunately, we managed to put a few runs; I scored a few, he scored a few. I remember that I hit my second ball for four and I have never heard such a loud sound,” he added.
“Virat is very quiet off the field”
Bethell also shed light on Kohli’s personality away from the limelight, saying the former RCB captain is much more laid back than his fiery on-field persona suggests.“Away from cricket and off the field, he’s actually a very chilled individual. Great to talk to, great to spend time around. But it’s just that ability to bring back that competitive nature around cricket or training,” Bethell revealed. Bethell’s IPL 2026 campaign yielded 163 runs in nine matches at a strike rate of 140.52, but the English all-rounder has already credited Kohli, Rajat Patidar and Dinesh Karthik in a video posted by RCB on his official handle for helping him improve his game, particularly against spin, during his time with Bengaluru.