Asked afterwards if he got the impression the England’s captain’s tenure was drawing to a close, Atherton told Sky Sports: “I think his time is done, actually, as captain and I think that’s probably right.
“The batting is just not quite there, it’s not quite clicked for him and what England are losing from his batting, they’re not gaining from his leadership, so if that’s the trade-off, I’d prefer to see a brilliant Jos Buttler batting for England.”.
He added: “He looks quite care-worn, he looks like the weight of the captaincy is on him, and at a different time and under slightly less weight he’d have taken England to victory tonight along with Joe Root.
“But England have had three bad ones in a row now, the disastrous 50-over World Cup in India, a poor T20 World Cup in the Caribbean – where they made the semis but they didn’t beat anybody of note though it – and now here, and their cricket is way below the standards which they set themselves.
Meanwhile, another former England captain Nasser Hussain, bemoaned England’s lack of “smart” cricket when they needed it most.
