Five potential replacements for Alastair Cook

#2) Mark Stoneman

Surrey v Nottinghamshire - Specsavers County Championship: Division One

Similar to Alex Hales, Mark Stoneman has not really had much opportunity to make a name for himself when it comes to Test match cricket. His initial days as a top-order batsman brought about some success, especially in the eyes of coach Trevor Bayliss. The latter was impressed on such a level that he admitted to watching Stoneman bat for the first time in England colours.

However, a tremendous start to a promising career was stunted with a few poor performances with the bat. His lack of form coupled with not-so-great technique saw him left out of the five-match Test series against India.

As things stand, Stoneman is currently plying his trade for Surrey and has performed reasonably well with the bat. This includes an impressive 144 and a rather stroke-filled 86 both coming against Notts County.

The solidity with the bat, as far as everyone is concerned is there, but whether he will replace Cook in a rather competitive environment is something one seriously must consider.