After retiring from international cricket, outgoing England Test skipper Ben Stokes has fully endorsed Harry Brook as his preferred replacement to captain England's Test side.  

After serving as Stokes' vice-captain in the Test setup, Brook—who presently leads England in ODIs and T20Is—is considered the front-runner to assume the position permanently. It's interesting to note that the England management chose ex-skipper Joe Root to captain the team in place of Brook when Stokes was sidelined for the second Test match against New Zealand.

Stokes, however, clarified that he was not involved in that choice and reaffirmed his conviction that Brook is the best candidate to succeed him.

"There's a reason why he was asked to be vice-captain of this team. I know with all the controversy over the last couple of weeks, some decisions were made, but those were decisions that I wasn't part of making," Stokes told the media after England’s Test series loss to New Zealand.

Stokes explained that Brook's promotion would simply follow the traditional leadership pathway within the team.

"You're asked to be vice-captain of a team for a certain reason. I was vice-captain under Joe for a long time, and it's a natural progression. If the captain's not there or unavailable, then you step up to do that. So, there's absolutely no reason why Harry shouldn't be asked to do it," Stokes added.

Stokes also emphasized Brook's increasing impact in the locker room, encouraging the Yorkshire batter to succeed in the position.

"He is someone who is obviously an incredible player and one of the more senior players in this group. Only time will tell, but you don't ask someone to be vice-captain if you don't think they've got the skills and the ability to captain the team when they need to. If I were asked who I think should do it, I'm throwing my 100% support behind Harry Brook," Stokes concluded.

Following Jos Buttler's departure in April 2025, Brook was formally named England's white-ball captain. He most recently captained the team at the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

In the ICC Test Batting Rankings, Harry Brook is now ranked second in the world, just behind teammate Joe Root, demonstrating his skill as a hitter in Test cricket.

(Sky Cricket inputs)