England are faced with a dilemma as they seek to appoint a new Test captain.
The position was left vacant following the retirement of Ben Stokes from international cricket, a bombshell announcement that came midway through England's third Test against New Zealand.
Stokes' resignation came off the back of his suspension for the second Test, pending an investigation into a 'breach of team protocols'; Joe Root skippering the side in his absence.
Whilst Root is a candidate for the captaincy on a permanent basis, he is unlikely to want a go at the job for a second time, just four years on from his resignation from the post.
Harry Brook is the obvious choice to take over full-time, but again, it is unlikely that the Yorkshireman would be expected to juggle his white-ball responsibilities with the intense scrutiny that comes with taking charge of the Test side.
With that in mind, we attempt to solve England's captaincy conundrum...
Give Harry Brook the red-ball reins
Whilst there are few options to take on the captaincy in the Test setup, there are a numerous potential leaders involved in the white-ball squads.
Therefore, relieving Brook of his responsibilities in the shorter formats and handing him the keys to the Test kingdom is, in my mind, the only realistic route that England can go down.
Of course, there are obvious concerns relating to Brook's off-pitch behavior last Autumn and critics of how he goes about communicating with the media, however, what he has shown as a captain on the pitch has been pretty impressive.
He skippered England to the semi-final of the T20 World Cup earlier this year, where his side put up a valiant effort in defeat to eventual winners India and his form with the bat doesn't appear to suffer under the weight of responsibility that captaincy brings with it.
In addition to reaching the last four of the World Cup, England have won five of their seven series under Brook's leadership, a record deserving of greater opportunity.
The 27-year-old is one of the few un-droppable members of the team and he is now ready to step up after four years of experience in the Test arena.
Let Jacob Bethell take the ODI side
Don't be fooled by his age, Jacob Bethell is wise beyond his years and is almost certainly a future England Test captain.
The current setup made him the youngest-ever England captain when he led a second string side to T20 success in Ireland and the time has come for the 22-year-old to harness his leadership skills even further on the international stage.
England's ODI schedule is a lot lighter these days and this would help Bethell juggle the pressures of performing as a three-format player alongside a captaincy position.
For many, Bethell is the future of English cricket and investing in him now could pay off big time in the future.
Introducing T20 captain Sam Curran
All-rounder Sam Curran is one of England's premier short format players and would be an interesting option to lead the T20 side.
The 28-year-old has a wealth of experience behind him, plying his trade in franchise leagues all around the world including the IPL, SA20 and BBL. As well as his time around the globe Curran has been a regular fixture in Surrey's domestic white-ball teams and took over the captaincy of the Blast side, assuming control from Chris Jordan.
Curran was named Player of the Tournament when England lifted the T20 World Cup in 2022 and again delivered consistent returns during his side's run to the semi-final when the competition was staged again earlier this year.
The Surrey man has been touted as a potential all-rounder replacement for Stokes in the Test setup, but it is his exploits in the shortest format of the game that are deserving of increased responsibility.
