Harry Brook could edge ahead of Ollie Pope in England’s Test pecking order this winter, with head coach Brendon McCullum admitting the vice-captaincy will be on the agenda when selectors meet in London on Monday.
The New Zealander flies home this week after a soggy end to the South Africa T20 series at Trent Bridge. Before he packs his bags, he and managing director Rob Key will finalise the Ashes squad – a task McCullum reckons will be “pretty easy” yet still contains one fairly delicate call.
“We will work on that one as well,” McCullum said when quizzed about naming a deputy for Ben Stokes. “We will chat about that over the coming days, as we finalise our Ashes squad. You’re always looking at things, right? Every time you get together with a series, you discuss things. I think it’s no secret that Harry Brook is emerging as a leader within English cricket, so that’s something we need to work out. But whatever happens, a great team man understands that just because you haven’t got a title, doesn’t stop you from being a leader.”
Pope, appointed to the role in early 2023, has stood in on five occasions – most recently at Dharamsala when Stokes’ shoulder gave out. Three wins and two defeats sit alongside a tidy average of 41.60 at No.3. The Surrey batter remains popular inside the camp. Even so, the rise of 22-year-old Jacob Bethell and talk of a reshuffled order have nudged Pope’s position from nailed-on to “likely”.
Brook’s stock, by contrast, has shot up since he took England’s white-ball reins in March after Jos Buttler’s abrupt resignation. He and McCullum have spent the summer glued together, plotting formations, overseeing training drills and trying – not always successfully – to keep Brook’s own schedule under control.
“I’ve enjoyed working with Brooky, I think he’s taken to the role really well, really quickly. Still a work in progress but he’s got a demanding schedule himself and we have to be aware of that as we move forward,” the coach added.
There is more than management-speak behind the compliments. Brook’s instinctive, uncluttered batting – 1,190 Test runs at 59 – meshes neatly with the “play freely” mantra England have held since McCullum and Stokes took charge. His public persona, calm and occasionally deadpan, has also played well with senior players who prefer deeds to slogans.
“He’s got a good head on his shoulders, he’s well connected within the group. He keeps things very simple. We’ve got a really good relationship and I think that started well,” McCullum said, offering further endorsement.
None of this guarantees Brook will be named vice-captain. England’s hierarchy are wary of overloading one of their brightest talents, especially given a calendar that squeezes an eight-week Ashes tour between two lucrative franchise windows. Sources close to the set-up talk of a possible split – Brook elevated in red-ball cricket, Pope retained for the ODI side – though nothing is settled.
Selection meetings this close to a major tour tend to throw up a surprise or two. Beyond the deputy talk, England have to nail down back-up seamers, decide whether to persist with a specialist spinner in Australian conditions, and weigh up Ben Foakes’ glovework against Jonny Bairstow’s counter-punching.
McCullum insisted most calls “pick themselves”, hinting that continuity from the India series is the likely route. Yet he also acknowledged the urgency of regaining a trophy that has been Australian property for a decade. “You’ve got to look at every angle,” he said, “and we will.”
For Pope, the next 48 hours may feel longer than any last-wicket stand. He remains respected, he remains integral, but he is no longer the only internal candidate. Brook’s surge, Bethell’s breakthrough summer, the constant churn of modern schedules – they all feed the same reality: nothing stands still for long in this England dressing-room.
A decision is expected before the squad is announced later in the week. Whoever walks out behind Stokes at the Gabba in December will do so under ferocious scrutiny but, in truth, the bigger challenge is likely to arrive the moment they step back inside that changing room and feel the weight of expectation that comes with an urn still out of reach.
