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*PUKE* Cannot stand this Grade A plonker.

Stuart Broad has recalled how his personal success on England's Ashes whitewash in Australia three years ago helped to "make him as a cricketer", amid speculation that he has been interviewed by the ECB with a view to becoming Alastair Cook's successor as Test captain.

According to the Daily Mail, Broad - along with Joe Root and Ben Stokes - met with Andrew Strauss, England's director of cricket, and James Whitaker, the chairman of selectors, on Thursday as the formal recruitment process got underway.

While Root remains the overwhelming favourite to lead England in their next Test series, against South Africa in July, there are legitimate concerns about the workload on both him and Stokes, two players who are deemed indispensable to England in all three formats.

And that could yet be a reason to hand the Test captaincy to Broad, 30, a senior player with established leadership qualities (he was England T20 captain for three years until Eoin Morgan succeeded him in 2015), but who has played only two limited-overs matches since the 2015 World Cup.

Moreover, with England's defence of the Ashes fast approaching in November, Broad's proven appetite for the heat of battle in Australia - where he has recently completed a successful stint with Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash - could be another reason to entrust him with the captaincy.


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