How Harry Brook got off to a flying start as England's new white-ball captain: Funky fields, empowering team-mates and going hard at the start

Daily Mail​

a day ago

If the true characteristics of a captain shine through in a crisis rather than a cruise, it was midway through his maiden series whitewash of West Indies that Harry Brook revealed his approach to repairing England's damaged white-ball reputation.
Between the processions to victory by the canals of Birmingham and the banks of the Thames, they were largely naff next to the Taff, Brook admitting of the Cardiff performance: 'I didn't feel we deserved to win.'
Joe Root 's career-best, unbeaten 166 resuscitated a chase of 309, after half the side had been dismissed for 133, but it was in the preceding innings, when England's sloppiness resulted in four dropped catches, that Brook sent signals to both his team-mates and those assessing his credentials as Jos Buttler 's successor.
There was no huffing, no puffing, no hissy fits; arm waving and finger jabbing were conspicuous by their absence. His body language was consistent with the assured character that surged from novice status to Test cricket's top-rated batsman in the space of two years.
Freshness helps, of course. Captaincy is Brook's shiny new penny; his enthusiasm yet to be tested by the grind of an unforgiving international schedule, as Ben Stokes experienced in Pakistan last autumn, leading to a public apology to his team-mates for his demeanour.
The comparison with Stokes is apt as Brook unashamedly views England's Test revolutionary as his role model. He also shares head coach Brendon McCullum's belief international cricketers produce their best when they are backed and feel relaxed.
And his empowerment of people has already paid dividends. For Brook was instrumental in persuading Jamie Smith and Will Jacks to re-imagine themselves within England's one-day XI.
There was some reluctance from Smith when, in the aftermath of a disastrous Champions Trophy at No 3, talk began of converting him into an opener. Memories of failing to pierce the field as a teenager with Surrey — 'the majority of my experiences had not been great' — came flooding back. Equally, in 34 of his first 36 limited-overs international appearances, Jacks had batted in the top three. Yet Brook saw different value in one of England's thinking cricketers, asking him to game-manage from the crucial position of seven.
Jacks said earlier this week that once Brook's trust had been established, he began visualising the different challenges the new role presented. 'It's just adjusting to the situation and making good decisions,' he said, after crunching 39 from a standing start at Edgbaston, then sitting on his bat handle for 49 as Root did his thing in south Wales.
'They're both amazing players of seam and spin, so it's nice to see those boys having some time out in the middle and playing well,' was Brook's assessment of how the pair had coped in their new positions. Like Stokes, Brook might not be an academic, but he is cricket smart. While McCullum, director of cricket Rob Key and national selector Luke Wright were naturally involved, the first squad selections of the summer had Brook's fingerprints all over them. A belief that the best Twenty20 teams have a quality spin-bowling all-rounder in the middle order was instrumental to the recall of Hampshire slow left-armer Liam Dawson.
And he sets funky fields, prioritising wicket-taking over containment. As Buttler said of the 26-year-old's tactical acumen while deputising last September: 'Watching him from the side against Australia, he was as positive a captain as I've ever seen.'
Not since MS Dhoni has an international captain indulged such fascination with leg slip. It encourages the seamers to bowl straight, knowing that flicks off the pads are laced with jeopardy, and acts as a deterrent to sweepers when Adil Rashid's probing leg-spin is introduced.
At the Oval on Tuesday, England spent a large part of their 40 overs without an extra cover — offering opponents runs in exchange for their dismissals.
He also front-loads innings, ensuring his best bowlers operate at the start. Stiffer challenges than that posed by West Indies lie ahead, but early impressions are encouraging. So much so that if injury were to strike Stokes, ruling him out of Tests against India or Australia later this year, there would be an argument for Brook rather than vice-captain Ollie Pope taking over.
Brook is clearly comfortable in his own skin. You would have to be to captain with Stokes in the ranks, as he did with Northern Superchargers last year. Similarly, he is managing two predecessors in Buttler and Root, when a new era might have been the right juncture to move on from the 30-somethings.
When Buttler halted a game of whist, suggesting getting off the bus and switching to bikes to beat the London traffic on Tuesday, Brook fell in with the idea — but once play had started he left nobody in doubt who now holds the cards in this England side.