Alastair Cook has resigned: What next?

So, Alastair Cook has resigned. The BBC website, this morning, classed this as ‘Breaking News’; in truth, however, this has been coming since a supine England’s dismemberment at the hands of a talented and ruthless India reached its sorry, inevitable, bloody conclusion last month.

It is the right thing to do, for England and for Cook.

For England, there is the chance to bed-in Cook’s successor over the summer, before the onslaught of next winter’s Ashes series against a resurgent but wounded Australia, desperate for revenge for 2015’s embarrassment. As to who that successor should be…well, more of that later.

For Cook, the last couple of years, since his initial mooted indication that he wanted to step down, have been taxing. He has led an England team of some exceptional world-class individuals through a series of occasionally wonderful, but often bafflingly mediocre, displays. And this team inconsistency has bled into Cook’s own performances.

What England need now, more than ever, is a fully focused and firing Cook’s steadying presence at the top of the order. Cook needs to open the batting for as long as he is able: that is a fact. England have still not replaced Andrew Strauss as a batsman, so, to have to find a brand new opening partnership would set the cause back still further, at precisely the wrong time. To paraphrase the blesséd Oscar: to have to find one opening batsman may be regarded as misfortune; to have to find both looks like carelessness. Relieved of the pressures of captaincy, we should all hope to see Cook’s rare and wonderful talent as a test opener revitalised. Moreover, given the emergence of genuine potential partners for Cook in Haseeb Hameed and, to a lesser extent, Keaton Jennings, his role as a mentor is absolutely essential.

Stepping down as captain will also allow Cook to step out of the unforgiving glare of the (social) media spotlight. Having his performance as captain relentlessly pawed over, as if by Jimmy Savile in a mortuary, at the hands of the inarticulate amateur pundits - as well as the tedious, tired old hacks with tired old axes to grind - on Twitter, cannot have been easy for someone as decent and honourable as Cook. And for those who doubt those adjectives, let us not forget, it was Cook who led the process of Kevin Pietersen’s integration back into the England set-up at a time when many others would have continued to leave him in the wilderness. That Pietersen has subsequently been re-ostracised is nobody’s fault but Pietersen’s.

But this future England test side, with Cook anchoring the batting, needs a captain, and the obvious choice is Joe Root. As vice-captain, he has, seemingly, been anointed and his coronation appears to be a foregone conclusion. There should be, however, no rush to appoint. England do not play test cricket again until July 6th and an appointment in haste could lead to an Ashes winter of bitter repentance and recrimination.

The Ashes series in Australia will be unbelievably tough, both physically and psychologically. A mauling could damage Root irrevocably and that is not good for England’s long-term future. England’s next captain needs to be someone who has experience, who has faced the hostility of an Australian team, press and public and borne it with a patient shrug, as well as with an air of nonchalance and arrogance.

Step forward, Stuart Broad.

Although at times physically fragile, Broad has the rock-hard strength of character to drag England through next winter, whether in good times or in bad. Crucially, Broad also has the experience and personality to manage the volatile, but potentially series-winning, James Anderson through his last hurrah. In the meantime, Root would be free to continue his education, learning from a different, possibly more adventurous, captain, whilst, at the same time, scoring the runs required to allow England to retain the urn.

Whatever happens, however, let us remember that Alastair Cook is England’s leading test run-scorer and has won the Ashes twice as a captain. Is he England’s best ever captain? No. (Brearley or Vaughan for me, for what it’s worth). Was he the best man for the job? Absolutely. Has he been a successful captain? On balance, yes.

He deserves nothing but our heartfelt thanks and good wishes.