LONDON: Batter Pope, 25, has twice led England in warm-ups this winter and was in line to skipper had Ben Stokes not been fit for the first Test in Pakistan. “I try not to look into it. I’ve got to score runs and be successful at number three,” Pope told a sports channel.
“I’ll keep developing my cricket brain, so if the opportunity does arise I’ll be as well equipped as I can be.” Surrey’s Pope took charge of the England team for a match against England Lions before the 3-0 series win in Pakistan, and did the same again in Hamilton in a two-day match against a New Zealand XI that has served as preparation for two Tests against New Zealand. He was also on standby to lead the team in Rawalpindi in December when illness hit the England camp before the first Test against Pakistan and Stokes was one of the players affected.
England have not named an official vice-captain to Stokes and Pope says there is no “label” on his increased exposure to a leadership role. “There’s no vice-captain, there are a lot of leaders within the changing room,” said Pope. “If Stokesy wants to bounce ideas off me during a game, I’m more than happy to use my knowledge.
“It [the captaincy] might be an option they are looking at in the future. It’s just good to be seen as a leader in that changing room.”
Pope, who has played 33 Tests since making his debut as a 20-year-old in 2018, captained teams at junior level but has only skippered in one game of professional cricket – Surrey’s high-scoring draw against Glamorgan in the County Championship at the end of the 2021 season. Despite that lack of leadership experience, pace bowler Stuart Broad has labelled Pope a “future England captain”. “Popey is a great leader in the group,” said Broad, who has played under six captains in his 159-Test career. “He’s grown so much in the last year, in the way he operates, the confidence and responsibility he’s been given. He speaks really well in the group and he’s got a great cricket mind.”
