England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Wednesday (June 10) confirmed that ace batter Joe Root will step in as interim England captain for the second Test against New Zealand, slated to begin on June 17 at The Oval.

The development comes as full-time skipper Ben Stokes, along with pace bowler Gus Atkinson, was left out of the squad following a breach of the team's midnight curfew.

In their place, pace bowler Jofra Archer and batter Jordan Cox have been added to the 15-man squad.

“The England & Wales Cricket Board can confirm that, given the ongoing investigation, Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson have not been made available for selection for the 2nd Test against New Zealand… Yorkshire batter Joe Root will lead the team as Interim Captain,” the statement read.

Root previously captained England in 64 Tests and takes over the leadership role as the ECB investigates the recent breach of team protocols by Stokes and Atkinson.

The nightclub incident that occurred after England's victory in the first Test against New Zealand at Lord's reportedly involved a fracas with rugby player Totoa Auvaa, leaving an England security officer requiring stitches.

This incident has put the spotlight back on the England dressing room, as the team management was attempting to fix cultural issues from past indiscretions.

Amid the scrutiny, Stokes is reportedly weighing options between stepping down as Test captain, taking an indefinite break, or retiring from international cricket altogether.

England squad for 2nd Test vs New Zealand: Joe Root (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Matthew Fisher, Emilio Gay, James Rew, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue