Stokes set to be ‘appointed England Test captain imminently’ after Key talks

Ben Stokes is the stand-out candidate to succeed Joe Root as England Test captain, following his decision to step down from the role after five years in charge following a 1-0 series defeat to the West Indies

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Joe Root resigns as England Test captain after disastrous winter

Ben Stokes is reportedly set to be named England Test captain following positive talks with Managing Director of Men’s cricket Rob Key.

Key travelled up to Durham on Tuesday for a face to face meeting with Stokes to discuss the role. And iNews is reporting that Stokes could be officially unveiled as England’s new Test captain ‘in the next 48 hours’.

The report states that Stokes is ‘keen to accept the job’ and the ECB are ‘expected to announce his appointment by the end of this week’. The 30-year-old was recently backed to be a success as captain by Durham’s director of cricket Marcus North.

Speaking to Sky Sports , North said: “He’s a match winner, he has moments of absolute brilliance and wins games on his own. That’s someone that you naturally, as a teammate, will be inspired to play with and to follow.

“He’s someone that wears his heart on his sleeve and gives everything he’s possibly got for England when he plays.

“That’s always a great quality in a leader and I have no doubt that if he gets the opportunity and he wants to take that opportunity, he’ll have the whole dressing room behind him.”

Meanwhile, England have officially begun the recruitment process to find Chris Silverwood’s successor, with the ECB advertising online for separate red and white ball head coaches. Both coaches will report directly to Key and be “accomplished strategists with clear and ambitious plans for how they will develop and build success for English cricket moving forward”.

The two coaches will also “play a central role in selecting the team for their respective format alongside a national selection panel”, with a national selector also expected to be appointed after the role was abolished by Key’s predecessor Ashley Giles.

Gary Kirsten and Simon Katich are among the contenders to coach the Test team, while the likes of Brendon McCullum, Stephen Fleming and Shane Watson are understood to be on Key’s radar to coach the white ball side.