Former England captain Michael Vaughan has once again expressed concern over the leadership ability of England national cricket team’s stand-in captain Ollie Pope. Vaughan believes that even though England has achieved recent success under the captaincy of Ollie Pope, he should not be seen as a captain. According to Vaughan, Pope should be kept in the role of vice-captain rather than captain, as he is a great partner for Ben Stokes.

Ollie Pope was given the responsibility of vice-captain ahead of the home series against Ireland in 2023. He then took over the captaincy on the tour of India and West Indies. However, Vaughan believes that both Pope’s leadership ability and his batting are still under question mark.

Vaughan wrote in his column for ‘The Telegraph’

“Ollie Pope is a good vice-captain. He fits the bill well with Ben Stokes, his contribution to the team cannot be overlooked. But he is not yet ready for the role of captaincy.”

Not every vice-captain can be made captain: Michael Vaughan

Expressing his concern, Vaughan said, “Not every vice-captain is ready to become a captain. I think this applies to Ollie Pope’s case. He needs to focus more on his batting. If I am proven wrong by making Pope the captain, I will be happy, but I think he is a bit insecure right now.”

Joe Root and Harry Brook can be made captain: Vaughan

Vaughan believes that England should prepare Harry Brook as captain for the future. Vaughan suggested that if Stokes is unavailable and Brook is not ready for captaincy, then England should hand over the leadership responsibility to Joe Root again. Root’s experience can provide stability to the team.

Vaughan finally said, “Pope has a chance to learn from England’s best batsman Root. He should go to Root and learn the nuances of batting.”