Who is Bevon John Jacobs? 5 interesting facts about New Zealand batter signed by MI in IPL 2025 Auction

The two-day IPL mega auction concluded on Monday, November 25, in Jeddah, with five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) securing 18 players. MI have retained key stars like captain Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, and Tilak Varma.

In addition, MI have re-signed former pacer Trent Boult and added new players like Deepak Chahar and Will Jacks. The franchise is known for targeting young talents with the potential to become future superstars. Previously, MI have helped develop players like the Pandya brothers, Jasprit Bumrah, and identified the talent of South African pacer Marco Jansen.

This year, one standout name in the list that has sparked considerable excitement is New Zealand’s Bevon John Jacobs. The 22-year-old was bought for his base price of ₹30 lakh. As Jacobs begins his IPL journey, here are five interesting facts about the promising New Zealand batter.

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#1 Bevon John Jacobs was born in South Africa

Jacobs was born in Pretoria, South Africa, and relocated to New Zealand with his family when he was three. He attended Westlake Boys' High School on Auckland’s North Shore and grew up in Auckland, where his father introduced him to the game of cricket.

He also played for Auckland in age-group cricket and represented Westlake Boys High School in school cricket.

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#2 Recorded the highest individual score in Christchurch Metro competition in 2021

Bevon-John Jacobs played for Sydenham Cricket Club in the 2021 Christchurch Metro competition, where he scored 178 runs in a match against Old Boys Collegians, setting the record for the highest individual score in the tournament's history.

During that season, he also broke the record for the most runs in a one-day season, accumulating 546 runs.

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#3 Has a strike rate of 188.73 in nine T20 games he has played so far

The 22-year-old made his T20 debut for Canterbury against Auckland in December 2023. Batting at number 7, the right-handed batter blasted 42 runs off 20 balls, including four boundaries and three sixes. Despite his explosive performance, Canterbury lost the match.

So far, he has played nine T20 games, scoring 134 runs in six innings at an impressive strike rate of 188.73.

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#4 Made his first-class debut earlier this month in Plunket Shield

Jacobs made his first-class debut in November for Auckland in the Plunket Shield against Wellington. He impressed in his debut match, scoring 75 and 79 runs in two innings, helping Auckland secure a 54-run victory.

In his second match against Northern Districts, he scored 1 and 44 in two innings, but Auckland went on to lose the game by 179 runs. Overall, in his first two matches, Jacobs accumulated 199 runs, including two half-centuries.

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#5 Studied in the same university as Kyle Jamieson

According to the cricketer's Facebook account, Jacobs studied Sport and Recreation Management at Lincoln University, the same institution where New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson pursued his degree in commerce.

Jamieson has played 19 Tests for New Zealand, taking 80 wickets and scoring 432 runs, including one half-century. He has also appeared in 13 ODIs, claiming 14 wickets, and has played 13 T20Is, taking 10 wickets.