England is ready for a dramatic restart of the white ball, Ben Stokes being ringed for a day’s work shock and Harry Brook online to take care of the T20 team.
The resignation of Jos Buttler last week encouraged Key to ask Stokes to consider playing a role he only fulfilled – in the series with peak blows against Pakistan in 2021.
This would then leave Brook to build his experience as a captain with side 20 out of the 20, while England is preparing for the T20 World Cup next year in South Asia. The next 50 tournament takes place in southern Africa in 2027.
And although Key is not in a hurry from Rubberstamp to meetings, England no longer playing white ball cricket until the Antilles arrived at the end of May, he thinks that Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum can transfer their test alchemy to a one-day team that has lost their last seven games-their worst sequence since 2006.
“Ben is an incredibly good tactician, whom we saw in Test Cricket, but he is also a leader of men,” said Key.
“He is someone who draws the best party from people, and when the pressure is really underway, is able to throw a cover around the players and to say: this is the way to follow, continue. These are the qualities you need in leadership.
Ben Stokes is considered to return on the 50 side to take over as a captain
Jos Buttler resigned from his post as a white ball captain of England after the terrible campaign of the Champions Trophy
Harry Brook is considered for Captain T20 before the 2026 World Cup in Asia
With Stokes on the path of recovery after having torn his left hamstrings in New Zealand in December, and with an exhausting series of five tests this year against India and Australia, Key recognizes the need to manage his workload.
But he added: “It’s always the way in England – you start to look at if it’s not okay?” Do you also have to think: what if it’s okay? Well has a lot of energy for many things.
Key said he thought Brook “would be an exceptional captain” and played concerns that the best young drummer in England would be overloaded.
“I was prudent that Ben Stokes do the test of testing and had too much, and look at how it disappeared,” he said.
“It could bring out the best of Harry Brook. Additional responsibility is sometimes the best thing that can happen.