Root claims 'the ship has sailed' on becoming England’s next limited-overs captain

Joe Root has said the “ship has sailed” on him becoming England’s next white-ball captain.

Following Jos Buttler’s resignation after their early exit at the Champions Trophy, England require a new skipper for their ODI and T20I sides.

However, Root, who captained the Test team between 2017 and 2022, and remains one of the country’s best 50-over batters, does not view himself as a potential successor.

"I've done my time as a captain in an England shirt but I'm sure whoever gets the opportunity to do it will be extremely proud and do a brilliant job," Root told Sky Sports.

"I think that ship's sailed."

Buttler quit the role at the end of February after two-and-a-half years at the helm, but there has been little public movement in relation to a replacement.

England's managing director Rob Key said a decision will not be rushed and will consider Ben Stokes combining the position with his role as Test skipper among multiple other options.

Coach Brendon McCullum has not yet ruled out naming separate 50-over and T20I captains, which could have allowed Root to take on the ODI role given he is not currently involved in the shortest format for England.

1 - @root66 (12,474* runs) has now surpassed Alastair Cook (12,472) to become @englandcricket's leading scorer in men's #Tests; he has 72* runs so far in the ongoing innings, his 99th 50+ score in the format, at least nine more than any other England batter. Class. #PAKvENG pic.twitter.com/0gHCfNzsp3
— OptaJim (@OptaJim) October 9, 2024

Batter Harry Brook and wicketkeeper Sam Billings are also candidates, with the latter saying earlier this month he would “jump at the chance.”

Since winning the 50-over World Cup in 2018 and the T20 title in 2022, England have performed poorly at global tournaments, including at the Champions Trophy, leading to Buttler’s resignation.

"The Champions Trophy was disappointing," Root said of their group-stage elimination.

"We didn't play anywhere near what we're capable of. There's so much talent and so much more to come from that team.

"It's a really good opportunity to reset and to move forward again as a group and get back to the heights that we know we're capable of and where we were in and around that 2015 to 2019 phase."