5 possible replacements for Alastair Cook as England Test captain
England’s torrid Test tour of India finally ended with a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of the Virat Kohli’s side. The Rajkot Test was the only Test where the English looked fiercely competitive and then fell apart as it happens so often in a long Test series.
Undoubtedly, numerous questions were asked of Alastair Cook’s captaincy and the selection blunders he made, one of them being the inclusion of four seamers on a square turner in Mumbai. Even Cook’s press conferences after the series loss clearly indicated that he might be stepping down as the leader of the pack, though he later revealed that he will not be rushing into the decision.
This gives us an opportunity to look at the five probable replacements of Alastair Cook as England Test captain.
#1 Joe Root
Joe Root looks set to become the successor of Cook as he is highly rated by the England captain himself. Cook even went on to claim in one of his press conferences that Root is ready to captain his side.
Root’s consideration for the position of captain has not been sudden as he has been looked upon as an exciting prospect for England since his debut in 2012. During the tour of India, he was seen leading the team whenever Cook was off the field, albeit for a brief period.
Also Read: 5 reasons why Joe Root should be given the England captaincy
Root is young and his average of 52.80 in Tests highly speaks of his talent. Even during the tough tours of India and Bangladesh, he showed maturity and scored runs against some of the best bowlers and eventually was the highest run-getter of the series for England against India.
With age on his side and the backing of coach and Cook, Root looks the most promising candidate for the position at the moment.