Harry Brook says England Test captaincy would be 'great honour' after Ben Stokes' retirement: 'It's something I've always wanted to do'

Harry Brook has said it would be a "great honour" to take on the captaincy of the England Test side after Ben Stokes' abrupt retirement from international cricket.

Brook, England's Test vice-captain and white-ball skipper, was overlooked for the captaincy for the second Test against New Zealand at The Oval in the aftermath of the nightclub incident that saw Stokes stood down.

The England hierarchy turned to former Test captain Joe Root for that match, although Brook said that was "the right decision" at the time.

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However, the 27-year-old Yorkshireman would now relish the opportunity to lead England across all formats if he is chosen to succeed Stokes as Test skipper.

"It would be a great honour to captain England at Test level. It's something I've always wanted to do," Brook said.

"The decision isn't up to me, but if it was offered to me I'd be happy to take it. I think it would be a tough job, but everything's tough in cricket. It's a hard sport.

"I've committed completely to England cricket. I've said I don't want to play any franchise cricket barring the Hundred. Whatever I do, on and off the field, is to try and perform as well as I possibly can for England. Hence the reason I don't play in the IPL and PSL and all the other franchise competitions."

Stokes has also identified Brook as his "natural successor".

"I like trying to be fearless and putting pressure back on the opposition," Brook said. "But the decision isn't up to me."

Brook insists he would be ready to unify the role of captain across all three formats were he to get the call and would enjoy working more closely with head coach Brendon McCullum, who oversees England's Test and white-ball teams.

"I love working with Baz, he's a great bloke and an unbelievable coach," Brook added.

"Some of the things he has taught me throughout my career, giving us the opportunity to go out there and play in the style he and Stokesy wanted us to play suited me to a tee to start with.

"It's been about evolving as a player, taking some of those learnings from the past and acting on them in games."

Stokes backs Brook for Test captaincy

Stokes has made it clear who he thinks should follow him as England Test captain.

"If I was asked who I think should do it, I would be throwing my 100 per cent support behind Harry Brook," Stokes said.

"There's absolutely no reason why Harry shouldn't be asked to do that. He's an incredible player, one of the more senior players in this group - we all know he's a phenomenally talented individual when it comes to his skill as a batter.

"If you lump a bit more responsibility on his shoulders with this team, we don't know if that's going to show any more improvement in the skills he's already got. Only time will tell.

"But you don't ask someone to be vice-captain if you don't think they've got the skills or the ability to captain the team when they need to."

England vs New Zealand results

• First Test (Lord's) - England won by 115 runs
• Second Test (The Kia Oval) - New Zealand won by 253 runs
• Third Test (Trent Bridge) - New Zealand won by 160 runs

Watch the first T20I between England and India live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 5pm on Wednesday (5.30pm start).

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