Ben Stokes endorses Harry Brook. But who should be England’s next Test captain? | cricket news

There was no beating around the bush for Ben Stokes.

Freed from his shackles after the final Test and no longer having to carefully consider what he says to the public, the retired Stokes has made it clear who will succeed him as England captain.

“If you asked me who I think should do it, I would 100 per cent support Harry Brook,” Stokes said.

England vice-captain Brooke was overlooked to captain the second Test against New Zealand at The Oval in the aftermath of the nightclub incident which saw Stokes step down.

At the time, the England hierarchy had turned to former Test captain Joe Root, but Stokes believes the “phenomenally talented” Brook was his natural successor.

“There’s a reason he was asked to be vice-captain of this team,” Stokes added.

“I know that amidst all the controversy over the past few weeks, some decisions have been made, but that has not been part of my decision to make.

“For some reason I was asked to be vice-captain of the team. I was vice-captain for a long time under Joe. It’s a natural progression. If there’s no captain or he’s out, you just step up to that position.

“There is absolutely no reason why Harry shouldn’t be asked to do that. He is an incredible player and one of the most senior players in this group. We all know he is a phenomenally talented individual when it comes to his skills as a batsman.

“If you put more responsibility on his shoulders in this team, I don’t know if he could improve the skills he already has. Only time will tell.

“But don’t ask someone to be vice-captain if you don’t think they have the skills or ability to captain the team when needed.”

An all-rounder to replace Stokes?

Brendon McCullum has been head coach of England’s Test and white-ball teams since January 2025.

McCollum, who appointed Brooke as captain of England’s white-ball team in April 2025, was asked whether Stokes’ successor should fulfill the role across all formats.

“This is a conversation we need to have at the right time,” McCullum said.

“There are a few weeks left until the next Test series (against Pakistan on August 19), so there is time to sit down and plan what that will look like.

“We have strong leaders and options we can utilize, and they won’t be Ben Stokes, who was his own type of leader that we all admired.

“It takes some work, but that’s just the nature of things.

“No one can play or captain forever. We would like to congratulate Stokes on his captaincy and career. In time, we will start to think about the decision.”

‘Sing the same hymn’

Former England captain Nasser Hussain acknowledged Brook was a natural fit to work alongside McCullum as Test captain, but warned that white-ball commitments would put additional pressure on him.

“It depends on what happens at the top,” Hussein said. “If we continue to have (executive director Rob) Key and McCullum, Brook is a perfect fit.

“You can imagine McCullum’s style of play. That would be a positive. If it went that way, I would pick Brook, but it would put a lot of pressure on Brook as it did McCullum.”

“I think Michael Atherton puts too much pressure on McCullum. You can’t leave it all to him.

“If they go the other way, with an old-fashioned coach and an old-fashioned coach, they will have an old-fashioned captain. They need to be in tune with each other and sing from the same hymn sheet.”

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