Who needs to be England’s white-ball captain after Jos Buttler’s resignation?

England are on the hunt for a brand new white-ball captain with Jos Buttler quitting within the wake of the group-stage exit on the Champions Trophy.

Buttler misplaced 22 of his 34 one-day internationals as everlasting skipper since succeeding Eoin Morgan in 2022, with the bottom ebb the dismal 50-over World Cup title defence two years in the past when England misplaced six of their first seven video games and had been eradicated early.

Right here we have a look at the contenders to exchange Buttler, from the more likely to the unlikely to the downright fanciful…

Harry Brook

Center-order batter Brook is the excellent candidate to take over as one of many few gamers seemingly assured a spot in England’s 50-over and 20-over groups.

His significance to the aspect was underlined by coach Brendon McCullum naming him as Buttler’s white-ball vice-captain this winter and he led the ODI unit towards Australia final summer season throughout a 3-2 defeat, following on from skippering Northern Superchargers in The Hundred.

The one challenge for Brook – who can be a possible successor to Check captain Ben Stokes in time – often is the congested nature of the worldwide calendar.

As a Check common, too, England may look to prioritise him for impending assignments towards India at residence and Australia away, which means he will not be accessible for each limited-overs fixture.

Phil Salt or Liam Livingstone

Salt (pictured above) and Livingstone are the one different gamers within the present squad, after Brook, to have stepped into the breach as white-ball skipper when Buttler has been absent by way of harm.

Salt led the way in which within the T20s towards Australia final summer season earlier than Brook had his go within the ODIs, whereas Livingstone was handed the reins for the ODI leg of the West Indies tour in direction of the tip of 2024.

Neither had been capable of arrest England’s white-ball decline – small pattern dimension, admittedly – as Salt presided over a 1-1 sequence draw and Livingstone’s prices had been crushed 2-1.

Livingstone (pictured above) shone all through, although – top-scoring in 4 of these 5 matches, together with tonking an impressive maiden ODI hundred off simply 77 balls in his staff’s solitary success within the Caribbean.

Nonetheless, are each assured locations within the white-ball set-up shifting ahead? T20s, perhaps, however each common within the low 30s in ODIs.

Livingstone was initially dropped for the 50-over sequence towards Australia final 12 months, whereas Salt is flirting with the identical destiny after a current run of low scores on the prime of the order.

Ben Duckett

One man who has actually cemented his place within the England white-ball set-up, after years of tugging on the shirt of selectors, is Salt’s opening associate, Duckett.

Duckett has excelled throughout all three codecs since his reintroduction into the worldwide fold in late 2022, averaging 53.58 in ODIs in that point, a file which has solely improved to 63.90 since being shunted as much as open final summer season.

Whereas he has but to equally sparkle within the T20 enviornment, a 28-ball 51 towards India within the run-up to the Champions Trophy prompt it’s quickly to be a extra constant incidence.

Together with Joe Root, he is likely one of the few members of this England aspect to come back out of this newest debacle at an ICC occasion with any credit score within the again – his 165 off 143 balls within the defeat to Australia briefly standing as a Champions Trophy-record rating.

One slight concern with handing him the captaincy, nonetheless – simply as with Brook – can be how finest to handle that workload as a key contributor throughout all varieties.

Sam Curran

A left-field one right here.

Curran was Participant of the Event when England gained the 2022 T20 World Cup however has pale from prominence since and was not even chosen for the Champions Trophy as McCullum most well-liked seamers who can sling the ball down at 90mph.

England’s lack of variation within the center overs was clear in the course of the match with the staff showing to overlook somebody of Curran’s ilk – a crafty left-armer with a capability to ship cutters and shock bouncers. His left-handed batting may even have helped.

Curran has captaincy expertise with Punjab Kings within the Indian Premier League and Surrey in English home cricket and with a Check recall trying unlikely, he may deal with propelling England out of a white-ball funk that has seen 9 defeats in 10 matches.

Joe Root

It could not occur, may it?

A return to management for the previous Check captain is among the many extra unlikely options however, following Buttler’s resignation, McCullum was filled with reward for the job Root did that laid the groundwork for his and Stokes’ ‘Bazball’ fashion hitting the bottom operating within the red-ball enviornment.

May Root be tempted to reap the fruits of that labour this time, somewhat than look upon them enviously?

The 34-year-old might be a gentle pair of palms to steer England by way of these choppier white-ball waters – and it will on the very least earn him his T20 spot again, which he has been so keenly striving for with stints within the IPL and SA20.

Ben Stokes

This one simply is not going to occur – however what if it did?!

Stokes and McCullum reworked England’s Check fortunes once they joined forces within the spring of 2022, taking a aspect that had gained considered one of their earlier 17 video games and turning them right into a Bazballing – and largely successful – machine earlier than a slight plateau of late.

So, may they attempt to recreate that magic within the white-ball enviornment as nicely, giving the nation the identical management group throughout all codecs? No, is the brief reply.

Stokes is totally centered on Check cricket after current knee and hamstring points, with subsequent winter’s Ashes sequence in Australia one that may absolutely outline his tenure.

In reality, this white-ball gig seems to be Brook’s if he desires it.