Jos Buttler admitted he was considering his position as England white-ball captain after they crashed out of the Champions Trophy.
Back-to-back defeats to Australia and Afghanistan have guaranteed a group-stage exit for England, who also disappointed in the 2023 50-over and 2024 T20 World Cups under Buttler.
Here, the PA news agency looks at the runners and riders who could succeed Buttler if he decided to fall on his sword or was moved on by director of men’s cricket Rob Key in the coming weeks.
Harry Brook
Harry Brook has had a difficult time in Asia this winter but starred against Australia last summer (Owen Humphreys/PA)
The most likely candidate, having recently been appointed as Buttler’s right-hand man and impressing as a stand-in captain in five one-day internationals against Australia last September. England lost 3-2 but Brook was the highest run scorer in the series in a summer where he led Northern Superchargers to the brink of The Hundred eliminator, alongside Andrew Flintoff. Brook has had a chastening experience in Asia in the last few weeks and him being an all-format regular muddies the waters as Test and white-ball programmes can overlap. With Tests the priority this year, he might have to skip the odd T20 or ODI series.
Phil Salt
Phil Salt is in a lean run of form (Adam Davy/PA)
While Brook took care of the ODIs in Buttler’s injury-forced absence when Australia were last in England, Salt stood in for the drawn T20 series and said he “really enjoyed my first go at captaincy”. A dashing opener who seems tailor-made for the Bazball ethos, he could gel well with head coach Brendon McCullum and would be available for every assignment because he is not in the Test set-up. However, after making just one fifty in his last 10 white-ball matches, his place in the side is up for debate. After several soft dismissals, there are growing concerns he is not cut out for the rigours of ODIs.
Liam Livingstone
Liam Livingstone (right) has made just two scores above 15 in his last 10 innings (K.M. Chaudary/AP)
Livingstone was out in the cold ahead of Australia’s visit but shone after being given a second chance and then leadership in the Caribbean – amid Buttler’s continuing calf problems – brought the best out of him. An unbeaten 124 in Antigua after batting higher up the order should have been the making of him but he has made eight scores under 15 in his last 10 innings. Criticised for his shot selection in the difficult role as finisher, Livingstone has a middling ODI record and may find his position comes under threat.
Sam Curran
Sam Curran is not in any England side right now (Bradley Collyer/PA)
Curran has captaincy experience with Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League as well as closer to home at Surrey but is out in the cold with McCullum. Since a player of the tournament role in the triumphant 2022 T20 World Cup campaign, his fortunes have mirrored that of England, with his bowling average and economy rate climbing and his batting not kicking on as some might have hoped. The all-rounder, though, is still only 26 and is impressing in T20 franchise leagues so his time can come again. His stock is probably better for being out of the side as England trudged to nine defeats in their last 10 matches.
Ben Duckett
Ben Duckett is one of the few England players to emerge with credit in recent weeks (K.M. Chaudary/AP)
Duckett led Welsh Fire in The Hundred in its inaugural season in 2021 and while they finished second bottom, Duckett finished as the men’s competition’s second highest run-scorer. He and Joe Root are England’s only batters to emerge from the past few weeks in credit, with Duckett excelling under McCullum in all three formats. But, as with Brook, England will be mindful of his workload especially in an Ashes year, while Duckett’s occasional habit of saying the wrong thing might keep him in the rank and file.