England is considering Ben Stokes for the white-ball captaincy

England had a terrible ICC Champions Trophy campaign, losing all three of their group matches and crashing out of the tournament. Their poor performance led to the resignation of white-ball captain Jos Buttler. Just three years after winning the T20 World Cup and six years after their famous ODI World Cup victory, England’s white-ball team is now facing serious questions. With their struggles clear for everyone to see, the team is searching for a new captain to lead them into the future.

England’s managing director, Rob Key, spoke to Sky Sports about the team’s captaincy options. He talked about the possibility of Ben Stokes making a comeback in white-ball cricket and taking on that responsibility along with his current role as Test captain.

"I think nothing's off the table, you look at every single option and you think, 'what is the best thing to do?' Ben Stokes is one of the best captains I've ever seen, so it'd be stupid not to look at him. It's just the knock-on effect of what that means," Key said.

Ben Stokes has been focusing on Test cricket in recent months. With injury concerns and a desire to extend his career, he has prioritized the longer format of the game. Despite this, he remains one of the best all-rounders in cricket.

Stokes was a key player in England’s ODI World Cup win and remains one of the senior members of the team. However, Key mentioned that England will take some time to plan their next steps and will also look at giving opportunities to some younger players.

"You're just looking for the best person, really, someone who you think can take this forward,” said Key. "We're not going to rush this decision as well. We'll take a bit of time.”

Key also mentioned a few names that the England management is looking at for the future, keeping the 2027 ODI World Cup in mind.

"We've had a plan in place where we've looked at lots of different people, so we've seen Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone, Harry Brook [in the role], there's plenty of options,” Key said.

England's next ODI series will be at home against the West Indies, set to take place at the end of May.

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