India, June 11 -- The Chelsea nightclub scandal left England managing director Rob Key in a state of "disbelief and anger". As speculation swirled around Ben Stokes' future and reports emerged that the England captain was even considering his international career in the aftermath of the incident, the ECB made its first major move 48 hours later by dropping both Stokes and Gus Atkinson for the second Test against New Zealand at The Oval.

But it was the accompanying captaincy decision that raised the biggest questions.

Rather than turning to Harry Brook, England's vice-captain in Tests and current white-ball skipper, the ECB handed the role to Joe Root on an interim basis. The move immediately sparked debate about what it could mean for S...