Five ways to get ‘irresistible’ James Rew into England’s Test XI

Last May, James Rew received his first senior England call-up for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe but did not play. This summer, the youngster’s strong start to the season means he is looking an irresistible pick for the upcoming series against New Zealand.

With a commitment from England managing director Rob Key to reward county performances following last winter’s Ashes humiliation, Rew has made a strong case for his inclusion for the first Test of the summer starting at Lord’s on 4 June.

The only problem is fitting him into the team, with the only likely vacancy in the top seven coming as an opener – assuming England’s patience with Zak Crawley finally snaps.

That’s problematic on two counts. Firstly, Rew has never opened in first-class cricket. Secondly, he’s a wicketkeeper-batter, meaning he would have to come into the team as a specialist batter if he were to be shoehorned in at the top of the order to assume a position he’s never played in his 60-match red-ball career.

Rew has so far scored 379 runs at 75.80 in five County Championship innings this season. Only Jamie Smith, England’s incumbent wicketkeeper-batter, has scored more in the top-flight of the Championship this summer.

It follows a 2025 season in which Rew made 1,053 Championship runs at 45.76 and became the youngest Englishman to score 10 first-class hundreds.

Rew’s runs this season have primarily come from No 4, although he did score a second-innings century in the opening match against Nottinghamshire from No 3.

England do not have a middle-order vacancy right now given Joe Root, Harry Brook, captain Ben Stokes and Smith look locked into the XI.

So where to fit Rew in? Here’s five ways it could be done…

Drop Jamie Smith

Okay, so you could get rid of Smith and replace him with Rew. It’s a simple solution to the problem but it isn’t going to happen. Smith’s stunning start to the summer for Surrey makes this option an impossibility for any reason other than injury. His Test record so far – an average of 41.48 plus nine scores over 50 – would also mean this course of action would be faintly ridiculous.

Chances: 0/5

Open with Rew

So we know he has never opened in first-class cricket but could Rew do the job if England were being bold? Jacob Bethell was thrust into the No 3 spot in New Zealand in late 2024 having never batted in that position before in red-ball cricket and that worked out just fine. This would be the preferred option and could be made easier if Somerset played Rew as an opener from now until early June.

Chances: 3/5

Strip Smith of the gloves and send him up the order

Smith won’t be dropped but could lose the gloves if he was asked to open. His runs this summer have come batting at No 3 for Surrey. Moving up one place to a position he has played in ODI cricket isn’t such a leap. This would also reduce the number of changes needed in the batting line-up.

Other than Smith moving, everybody else would stay put. This feels like the most likely way to squeeze Rew in if England were so inclined even if asking Smith to open would still be a huge ask for a player who has been very good lower down the order in Test cricket so far.

Chances: 4/5

Shift Bethell up to opener

Could Bethell be the best bet for any opening vacancy? He’s already proved he can bat against the new ball. Indeed, during his debut series in New Zealand, where Crawley was tormented by his nemesis Matt Henry, the latest Bethell came to the crease in six innings was the fifth over.

If you move Bethell up, could Rew bat at No 3? Probably. But would it make more sense to move Smith to three and give Rew the gloves at No 7? Yes. This might be too many changes for England’s liking though.

Chances: 3/5

Open with Ben Stokes

This has been a move debated throughout the Bazball era. Might England’s captain be the man to literally lead the way with bat in hand? He has the skills to see off the new ball and to counter-attack when required. His returns with the bat – an average of 27 in the past year – have been diminishing of late anyway so maybe switch things up and give him a new challenge?

It would also mean just one straight switch and allow Rew to play as a specialist batter at either No 6 or seven as he beds into Test cricket.

Chances: 2/5