England have called up Somerset prodigy James Rew to their Test squad against Zimbabwe, adding him to their roster of fresh-faced wonderkids.
His selection marks the continuation of a remarkable linear rise for Rew, who is still only 21. But it also highlights a different kind of selection from England's head honchos, at least compared to the other young guns they've selected over the last couple of years.
Rew is one of two uncapped players in England's squad, the other being Essex's Sam Cook. Cook has had to bide his time to win England selection, having been the standout seam bowler in the County Championship for several years, as well as churning out wickets for England Lions when selected. Both Rew and Cook have been picked off the back of red-ball returns rather than the novelty or flare they bring. There's proof there, that while Championship returns aren't always at the crux of England's current selection policy, they do matter.
The records Rew has broken in the Championship to date make his selection look obvious on paper. He became the youngest Englishman since Denis Compton in 1939 to reach 10 first-class centuries at the weekend. “I wish you hadn't told me that, I had no idea,” Rew said to Wisden.com when informed of the impending record in a conversation during Somerset's fixture against Hampshire two weeks before. “You read stuff and you hear about stuff, I don’t really look at personal records.”
That record has been on the cards since Rew's first full season for Somerset in 2023, in which he churned out five hundreds, equalling the record for a teenager in the County Championship. While there was a dip in his returns last year, he still finished the season with an average of 36.30, and notched up two more hundreds.
His success has put Rew on a set trajectory with Somerset, evident when he was given the captaincy in Lewis Gregory's absence at Utilita Bowl last month. Despite Craig Overton being marked down as Gregory's vice-captain, and with former captain Tom Abell in the XI, it was still Rew who stepped out in his blazer at the toss.
“There are so many players who have played a lot more cricket than me,” said Rew. “I think if you’d asked me a couple of years ago what that [captaining them] would be like I would have told you it would have been very strange.”
For Rew, the position he holds at Somerset and his prior Championship success marks him apart from the other 21-and-unders who have won Test caps since Brendon McCullum took over. Jacob Bethell has taken up a deal in the IPL instead of chasing his maiden first-class century in the early Championship rounds. His 20 first-class games prior to his New Zealand Test debut had yielded an average of 25.44. But, in a victory for Rob Key's 'stats are for prats' adage, catapulting him in at No.3 uncovered what could potentially be their best hunch yet.
England’s top scorer in the 2022 U19 World Cup final ✅
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) May 8, 2025
Ten first-class centuries before turning 22 ✅
James Rew gets his due with a maiden Test call-up 👏#JamesRew #ENGvsZIM pic.twitter.com/PH752yqmon
Of the rest selected on the same lines, there has been limited success. Josh Hull has yet to play another Test after struggling at The Oval against Sri Lanka. Shoaib Bashir's current Championship difficulties off the back of a mediocre winter make his continued selection controversial, and how best to use Rehan Ahmed still feels elusive.
The difference in Rew's selection is the type of hype which has surrounded his rise. While Bethell was marked as primarily a white-ball bolter with red-ball promise later down the line, Rew's career has so far been centred around the first-class format. He has played just three T20 games in his professional career, two of which came in last year's T20 Blast finals day - where he scored a pivotal half-century in the semi-final coming in after a top-order collapse. In first-class cricket, however, his strike-rate is a steady (53.43), and his most notable performances don't fit with the stereotype of his generation of professionals hailing from white-ball nurseries.
“I generally do take quite a while to get in,” Rew says. “I'm a slow starter, that's generally how I play and I don't think it's going to be easy for me to change that.”
In keeping with that, the first 50 runs of his match-winning century against Essex last weekend came off 91 balls, having taken the first 21 of those to reach double-figures. There have been glimpses of adaptability, with his innings-saving 80* against Sussex last month coming at almost a run a ball. But, primarily, Rew's talents lie in volume over flare, and his selection feels like recognising the inevitable over taking a punt on another youngster.
There's every possibility, however, that Rew will have to wait longer for a Test debut. The man he's replacing, Jordan Cox, was likely in the squad as a spare batter, and after the Zimbabwe Test, Bethell will likely get backing over him for the India series. His squad selection, however, is another rung on the traditional ladder he's been steadily climbing to reach higher honours.
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