"My slight worry is that Ben will try to do everything" - Michael Vaughan on Ben Stokes' prospects as England's Test captain
Former England captain Michael Vaughan sees Ben Stokes as the leading contender to replace Joe Root as England's Test skipper. However, the cricketer-turned-commentator fears the all-rounder will overwork himself by trying to do everything.
Root resigned as the skipper of the Test side on Friday, 15 April, bringing an end to a five-year tenure. While the 31-year-old's form with the bat has been impressive, England's string of losses made his position untenable. However, he finished as the most successful England Test captain.
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In his column for The Telegraph, Vaughan stated that assuming too much burden wouldn't help and affect his performance negatively. The 47-year-old wrote:
"My slight worry is that Ben will try to do everything - he will not get his own performances right if he goes in with that mentality. It is just about getting the right people in the right positions - England have a lot of support staff, who they need to get right. What Ben will need around him is people who tell him: "Ben, you can't do everything.""
The 2005 Ashes-winning captain underlined that Stokes does have disciplinary issues; however, he praised the all-rounder's work ethic. Vaughan expects the side to follow in Stokes' footsteps, stating:
"Stokes has had disciplinary issues before - we all know that - but he's now as professional as they come and sets the standard for the side in terms of work ethic and his dedication to training. His team will just be able to look at him and know what he expects."
The 30-year-old seam-bowling all-rounder has been serving as the vice-captain of the Test team for quite some time now. The New Zealand-born player captained England in the first Test of the 2020 home summer; however, the hosts lost the game.
"He's got a great cricket brain" - Michael Vaughan on Ben Stokes
The former right-handed batter admitted that while Stokes lacks captaincy experience, his presence makes a big difference. Vaughan also thinks the southpaw holds an incredible will to win. He wrote:
"Yes, Stokes doesn't have that much captaincy experience. But sometimes that is not so important if you have a presence and feel for the game. When someone takes over the mantle, you have got no idea what they will be like. But he's got a great cricket brain - you can see that when he bats. And his will to win is incredible."
Although the all-rounder remains the leading candidate to succeed Root, Stokes earlier revealed he has no ambitions to lead. He hailed the right-handed batter for bringing the team together and said the entire dressing room supports Root.