Joe Root has been officially named as England’s 80th Test captain. The Yorkshire batsman succeed Alastair Cook, who resigned last week after a record 59-match tenure.
26-year-old Root has been Cook’s vice-captain since May last year, and is the best scoring batsman since his Test debut in December 2012.
He will have five months to prepare for his first Test as the new captain when England play South Africa at Lord’s on 6th July.
The England and Wales Cricket Board canvassed the opinion of several senior players before confirming Root had been handed the job on Monday morning.
“It is a huge honour to be given the England Test captaincy,” he said in an England and Wales Cricket Board statement.
“I feel privileged, humbled and very excited.”
“We have a very good group of players, and I’m looking forward to leading them out in the summer – building on Alastair’s achievements and making the most of our talents in the years ahead,” he added.