When Jenny Gunn stood-in for Charlotte Edwards as England captain, during the recent tour of West Indies, there was some speculation that the selectors were sending out a message - marking Gunn out as the anointed successor to Edwards when the skipper retires.
I think that the selectors were sending out a message... but not that one!
When a vice-captain is appointed, they are (to borrow recent analogies from the men's game) either Alistair Cook or Matt Prior.
The appointment of Cook as vice-captain to Andrew Strauss was a clear signal - Cook was the next-in-line; and although there was a "process" when Strauss retired, there was never really any doubt about the outcome.
The appointment of Matt Prior as vice-captain to Cook was intended to send completely the opposite message. No one (including clearly the man himself) believes that Matt Prior will ever captain England on a permanent basis, so the signal is the opposite one - there is no "heir-apparent" - the selectors are genuinely unsure who the actual next-in-line is, so they are stalling.
And this is what is happening with the women right now. There are several possible candidates: Taylor? Colvin? Knight? Indeed, if Edwards does carry-on until 2017 (as she keeps saying she will) it could even be someone who hasn't played for England yet such as Jess Watson or Sophie Luff.
So instead of walking into an anointment, the selectors hedged; and we don't know who the next England captain will be, because they don't either!
But we can be pretty sure about one thing: Jenny Gunn has been a fantastic player for England - so reliable; so dependable; so many wickets - but she will NOT be the next England captain.
I have exactly the same opinion. I think Jenny Gunn was ideal as a stand-in captain for when Lottie was injured. Jenny has ample experience and has a very calm and collected head on her shoulders. I think that if anyone else in the team had took over the captaincy, the pressure may have got to them and it could have effected they're game (Hollys bowling/Sarahs batting).
ReplyDeleteAs much as I would love to see Lottie keep captaining the team until 2017, I really can't see her staying fit. With her knee problems and the increasing amount of cricket being played, i.e. international and county, I feel she'll do well to get to 2015. If this is the case, I think the England selectors will hand the captaincy to Holly. She has taken over the captaincy of Sussex and been very successful so far. When 2015 comes round she will be in prime form and would have cemented her place in the all forms game