"That ship has sailed" Joe Root dismisses possibility of England ODI captaincy

Joe Root was part of England’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad.

It has been a tough start to the year for the England Cricket Team in limited-overs cricket. After a 1-4 T20I series loss and 0-3 ODI series whitewash against India, the Three Lions struggled in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and lost all three group games to crash out of the tournament.

Their poor run led to skipper Jos Buttler stepping down from his role in both T20Is and ODIs. Several names have been considered for the position since then, but the board has yet to announce a permanent captain.

One of the names considered for the role, Joe Root, has now confirmed that he is not interested in taking up the ODI captaincy again in his career.

Joe Root dismisses possibility of England ODI captaincy

Speaking to Sky Sports, Joe Root confirmed that he will not be leading England in ODI cricket in the future. The 34-year-old stated that “the ship has sailed” and emphasized that whoever takes on the role will be extremely proud.

Root said, “I’ve done my time as a captain in an England shirt, but I’m sure whoever gets the opportunity to do it will be extremely proud and do a brilliant job. I think that ship’s sailed.“

The veteran England batter expressed his disappointment over England’s winless run in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 but remained optimistic, stating that it is a good time to reset and move forward.

He added, “The Champions Trophy was disappointing. We didn’t play anywhere near what we’re capable of. There’s so much talent and so much more to come from that team.“

“It’s a really good opportunity to reset and to move forward again as a group and get back to the heights that we know we’re capable of and where we were in and around that 2015 to 2019 phase.“

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