Ex-Sussex man a frontrunner as wait goes on for England appointment

Former Sussex fast bowler Steven Finn is a leading contender to become England’s new selector.

But former captain Michael Vaughan has claimed it is “ridiculous” that the role has not already been filled.

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Ex-Sharks star Luke Wright stepped down from his position on the panel in January, a couple of weeks after the end of a bruising Ashes defeat, and final interviews to replace him are taking place this week.

Finn, a former international who is close to the dressing room and has stayed in touch with the game through media work since retiring in 2023, appears to be a front-runner, while older heads including Nick Knight and Darren Gough have also been linked.

Wright’s replacement will carry the beefed up title of ‘national selector’ and be involved throughout the process – from scouting, to the newly-formed county insight group through to picking senior squads and match XIs.

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But with four rounds of the Rothesay County Championship already gone, one more starting next week, and England’s first Test against New Zealand coming up at the start of June, Vaughan believes the appointment has been too slow.

“I think it’s ridiculous how they’re announcing a selector so late,” he told The Overlap and Betfair’s Stick to Cricket.

“It’s late, I wanted the selector there on April 1, going out, having a look, gathering information. Luke Wright quit at the back end of Australia. We knew didn’t we?

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“It’s a long time, four months, to find someone.”

Head coach Brendon McCullum has also missed the opening weeks of the domestic season, with the New Zealander only returning to England in time to lead a training camp at Loughborough in the last week of May.

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But the England and Wales Cricket Board’s pledge to reconnect with county cricket does not rest entirely with him. Managing director of men’s cricket Rob Key has been on the road taking in matches since the start of the campaign, while performance director Ed Barney and head of player identification David Court are active alongside the existing scouting network.

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Troy Cooley, the returning elite pace bowling lead, has also been running the rule over English quicks, while the county insight group comprising Mickey Arthur (Derbyshire), Anthony McGrath (Yorkshire), Alan Richardson (Worcestershire) and Richard Dawson (Glamorgan) is on hand to provide frontline recommendations.

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