ECB set to appoint Marcus North as national selector

England are set to appoint former Australian international Marcus North as their new national selector, a landmark move which sees the first foreign appointment to the post.

North has represented Australia 24 times in Test Cricket, and replaces Luke Wright after the former English batter stepped down from the role after a three-year term due to personal reasons. He has served as Director of Cricket at Durham since 2018, who he has represented in first-class cricket. 

As first reported in the Telegraph, North cleared the final round of interviews, which were held in the previous week, having beaten former England Internationals Steven Finn and Darren Gough to the job. 

His experience in administration has surely helped his credentials, as he played a major role in Durham’s recovery from forced relegation to Division Two of the County Championship in 2016. Durham endured a forced relegation in 2016 due to financial struggles and were promoted back to Division One in 2022. The end of the 2025 season saw them bumped down to Division Two after a dismal season. 

He was also the Director of the Hundred franchise Northern Superchargers (now Sunrisers Leeds) for three years. It was during his tenure that Harry Brook and Andrew Flintoff were appointed captain and coach of the franchise, respectively. Brook now leads England’s white-ball teams, having been appointed in 2025, while Flintoff is the coach of the England Lions.

England’s first assignment under North’s tenure would be their Test series against New Zealand, set to commence on June 4. The squad is set to be announced on May 18, before the players gather on May 25 for a training camp in Loughborough. North would shoulder the responsibility of zeroing in on England’s openers, with Zak Crawley’s place under question. Emilion Gay and Ben McKinney, players whom North has worked with at Durham, have been well-regarded across the circuit, with Gay even starting the 2026 County Championship in fine form with three centuries.

His appointment comes after England Director of Cricket Rob Key promised to engage with the County Championship much more deeply, after England’s 4-1 drubbing in Australia. His experience working in England’s domestic set-up would boost his credentials with these parameters in mind.