‘My 100% support’ – Retired Ben Stokes backs Harry Brook as next England Test captain

Retired England captain Ben Stokes has backed vice-captain Harry Brook to take the mantle and lead the Test side going forward. This comes after the talismanic all-rounder decided to hang up his boots from international cricket after the series against New Zealand, which they lost 2-1.

Stokes made a point, stating that Brook was named vice-captain of the side for a reason and would have been expected to lead the side in the captain’s absence, which is also a natural progression to be in charge once the skipper steps down, something the all-rounder did for several years under the leadership of Joe Root.

The 35-year-old, however, also touched upon the point where Root was named interim captain when he was unavailable for selection for the second Test after the nightclub incident. Stokes remained adamant that he was not involved in the decision-making process regarding that situation.

“There’s a reason why he was asked to be vice-captain of this team. I know that with all the controversy over the last couple of weeks, there were some decisions that were made (Root as interim), but those were decisions that I wasn’t part of making. You’re asked to be vice captain of the team for a certain reason. I was vice captain under Joe (Root) for a long time and it’s a natural progression. If the captain’s not there or unavailable, then he had to do that. So there’s absolutely no reason why Harry (Brook) shouldn’t,” Ben Stokes said via Cricinfo.

Stokes also credited Brook’s overall skills as a player and stated that he is already an experienced member of the Test squad, despite just 38 matches in the format. The left-handed batter claimed that he was handed the vice-captaincy since he possesses leadership qualities and backed him to lead the wounded Test side in the near future.

“He’s someone who’s obviously an incredible player, one of the more senior players in this group, but we all know he’s a phenomenally talented individual when it comes to his skills as a batter. And if you love a bit more responsibility on the shoulders with this team, we don’t know if that’s going to show any more improvement in the skills that he’s already got. Only time will tell, but you don’t ask someone to be vice captain if you don’t think that they’ve got the skills and the ability to be able to captain the team when they need to. So if I was to be asked who I think should do it, I’m throwing my 100% support behind Harry Brook,” he added.

It is worth mentioning that Brook is already in charge of England’s white-ball side, a mantle he took over from Jos Buttler last year. The Yorkshireman will have little time to dwell on the Test defeat to New Zealand as he will be in charge of the T20I squad for the five-match series against India commencing on Wednesday, July 1.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), meanwhile, have some time before they will have to name a successor to Stokes as the Test captain. England’s next assignment in five-day cricket is against Pakistan in mid-August. As things stand, the names thrown around to replace the now-retired skipper include Brook, Root, Jacob Bethell, Ben Duckett and former vice-captain Ollie Pope.

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