Vaughan backs Colly to be Test skipper

Updated 10.22 Wed Nov 14 2007
Keywords: England, Paul Collingwood, Michael Vaughan, sport, cricket

Michael Vaughan believes one-day skipper Paul Collingwood is the man to succeed him as England Test captain.

Vaughan is preparing to lead a 15-man England squad on their pre-Christmas three-Test tour of Sri Lanka.

: "I really believe he is going to make a good captain, I really do. He can switch to Test captain. If you can do one you can do both" - Michael Vaughan

The 33-year-old Yorkshireman is setting no specific timescale on the end of his own tenure or Collingwood's elevation.

But he told reporters: "I said at the time when I handed it (the one-day captaincy) on, if 'Colly' comes in and does a great job there might be a stage when he does both. I'm sure that stage will come eventually. Whether it's in a month, whether it's in a year, in two years, who knows?"

Vaughan added of 31-year-old Durham all-rounder Collingwood: "I really believe he is going to make a good captain, I really do. He can switch to Test captain. If you can do one you can do both."

"If in four or six weeks someone says the captaincy of the team should go to Colly, that it is in the best interests of the team that we have one and Colly leads both sides then that's okay with me. That's the way it is going to go eventually."

© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.