Leg-spinning all-rounder Rehan Ahmed is 'simply not good enough yet' to get into England's ODI squad, according to Mark Butcher.
Speaking on Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast, Butcher gave his honest assessment of Rehan's position in England's 50-over pecking order after their series against Sri Lanka. Rehan played the first two matches of the series with Adil Rashid out injured, but was underwhelming with the ball, picking up 3-94 combined in the two games, and returned scores of two and nought with the bat.
"It's been a really difficult year for him," said Butcher. "I think England really love the idea of Rehan Ahmed, but I'm of the opinion – and this is just mine, I'm not speaking for anyone else – that he's not quite good enough yet. Whether or not he has reached the apex of how good he can be, I just don't know. That's down to him."
Rehan has been named in several England squads across formats this summer, but his international appearances have been limited to the two ODIs against Sri Lanka and one T20I against India. He got his opportunity against Sri Lanka after a hand injury ruled out Rashid, but he was outshone in the spin ranks in the first ODI by Will Jacks, who took a five-for. After the second ODI, he was replaced by Liam Dawson for the final match of the series.
"They [England] love the idea of what he can do," said Butcher. "His talent and the skills that he has with leg spin and being a good ball striker and everything. But I'm not entirely sure that they think he's enough of a banker at either to find a permanent spot for him. As far as replacing Adil Rashid is concerned, that is a bit of a poisoned chalice anyway, so it's unfair to make that comparison.
"But in terms of what he can do, there is the possibility of a slot for him in the side, but at the moment I don't think he's quite good enough. That's for him to get to the bottom of and make whatever necessary improvements he can to become slightly more reliable at both of the skills he has."
The series win against Sri Lanka marks the continuation of England's timely turnaround in 50-over form. They have won all of their last three bilateral series, and will play an ODI tri-series against Pakistan and Sri Lanka next month, before playing another 50-over series against Australia in November. Those two series will begin the countdown to the 50-over World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia next year, for which England's squad is now starting to become clearer.
Having made his international debut aged 18 in England's 2022 Test series in Pakistan, Rehan's international appearances have since been sporadic. His reinvention as a hard-hitting top-order all-rounder for Leicestershire last year brought renewed hope that he could play a multi-dimensional role as a leg-spinning all-rounder for England.
Butcher compared Rehan's 50-over career so far to Sam Curran's, who was dropped from England's white-ball sides in 2024, but fought his way back in as a seamer batting in the top six.
"In the 50-over game, he [Curran] was bowling middle overs and batting at seven," said Butcher. "He's still not a guy who comes in at seven and smashes it everywhere; he bats higher than that and will bat for longer than that, and marshal run chases for you and plays spin very well. With the ball, you want him either at the death or with the new ball or not at all. Those roles are more there for him in this 50-over side than they were back then, and he's got much better at both. So there is absolutely room for Rehan Ahmed to get much better at both. But the way he is at the moment and with the competition for places in the squad, he's not good enough to get in it at the moment. It sounds harsh, but I think that's the reality.
"But he has an enormous amount of time to improve on that, and there are a lot of senior players there whose time will be coming to an end. So perhaps he will find more of a prominent role for himself in two or three years. But, at the moment, he's not there yet."
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