The three England places up for grabs and a new Ben Stokes role to monitor on County Championship return

Former Australia batter Marcus North appears primed to be England's new selector (Getty)

The affable Australian is unlikely to play too prominent a role with the first Test against New Zealand a matter of a month away but his installation is nonetheless intriguing. Deeply embedded within the county game over long periods as a player and now, North could still claim to have something of an outsider’s view – even if existing relationships with Stokes from Durham and Harry Brook from the Northern Superchargers will surely be a help as he settles in. There is much for him, the respective captains, Brendon McCullum and Rob Key to consider; it is a surprise, perhaps, that North is the only new face in the quintet after a winter that appeared to go so wrong.

Harry Brook and Ben Stokes will return to action for the first time this summer (Getty)

The sense of business picking up is underscored not just by the return of Stokes but also that of Brook, set for a first outing for Yorkshire of 2026 against Warwickshire. He and Joe Root should be back in the middle order together next week, as they will be, barring incident or accident, for England at Lord’s against New Zealand on 4 June.

Who will join them in that XI? We can lock Stokes in, obviously, while Ben Duckett’s encouraging form and strong overall record make him a certainty despite a lean trip Down Under. Jamie Smith has been in excellent touch with the bat for Surrey and is a better wicketkeeper than some would suggest, while Jacob Bethell should be inked in at No 3 given the aptitude and attitude he has shown for international cricket. Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson will, one would assume, figure somewhere in the bowling attack, with Jofra Archer to be considered a possibility as he continues an impressive IPL campaign.

That would appear to leave, perhaps, two or three spots up for grabs. It seems certain that Duckett will have a new partner at the top of the order, with Gay nudging ahead of the rest of the contenders with a third century of the season at Lord’s last week. Stylish and organised, there is a slight fear that the left-hander may be an LBW candidate at a higher level but Andrew Flintoff was said to like his “strut” while away with the England Lions this winter; North will be able to advise further on the 26-year-old’s technique and temperament having lured Gay to Durham from Northamptonshire in 2024.

Emilio Gay has pressed his case with three County Championship centuries (Getty)

James Rew, Somerset’s middle-order run-machine, should not be ruled out as an individual with the talent to take to Test cricket, though would need to be forced into an opening role he has not regularly filled. The spinner’s berth, presuming one is desired, could be a forced fit – the divergent profiles of, to pick a handful of names, Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed, Mason Crane, Liam Dawson, Jack Carson, Liam Patterson-White and Shoaib Bashir speaks to a position where beauty will be very much in the eye of the beholder.

To continue the Durham theme, two of their seamers took the new ball at the end of the Ashes; it feels unlikely that either Brydon Carse, in part due to injury, and Matthew Potts fulfil that brief this summer. It was intriguing, then, to hear Durham head coach Campbell tell the Press Association that he and Alex Lees were considering utilising Stokes first up against Worcestershire. “We like to start with someone who can swing the ball and Ben obviously does that,” Campbell explained. “We won’t expect him to bowl a million overs, it will probably be around 20-25 overs for the game, but once he gets into the battle it’s hard to get him out of it.”

Sam Cook of Essex could add to the Test cap he earned against Zimbabwe last summer (Getty)

Stokes, with his ability to angle in and generate lavish movement away, might be England’s most skillful seamer, and it is a slight surprise he has not looked at himself more often as a new-ball option at Test level. Workload and the challenges of captaincy would be fair reasons against such an idea. The retirements of Stuart Broad, James Anderson and Chris Woakes in successive summers has clearly left a vacancy to fill, mind – the performances of Sam Cook, for Essex against a struggling Hampshire top order, and Sussex’s Ollie Robinson against Leicestershire will be watched eagerly as the selection squabbles intensify.