Like Ruud van Nistelrooy at Manchester United, England interim white-ball coach Marcus Trescothick hands over a team that feels far more cohesive than only a few weeks earlier.

As Brendon McCullum prepares to become the full-time white-ball coach in the new year, he will inherit a side who have shown glimpses of reinvigoration after two moribund years.

Five issues will go a long way to determining whether England’s white-ball side can now enjoy the same uplift in results as the Test team did when McCullum took over.

The return of the old guard

Ahead of the Champions Trophy in February, the call will once again go out to Ben Stokes. The allure of Stokes lies partly in his two crucial innings in World Cup finals – in 2019 at Lord’s, and 2022 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. But it also reflects how, if he is at anything like full fitness, Stokes offers an unrivalled way to balance the side: batting in the top six, and giving England a fourth seamer who is adept at reverse swing. Without Stokes, England will struggle to fit in a fourth seam option, unless Sam Curran – whose tour of the West Indies confirmed the perception that he should be considered a batting all-rounder – plays in the top seven.

Joe Root presents another conundrum. England were at pains to say that he was rested, not dropped, when he didn’t play against Australia in the ODIs in September. Against the high-quality attacks in Pakistan – or wherever the tournament is played – the suspicion is that Root’s technical class and adaptability will be essential. Yet a counter-argument can also be made. Root will be 34 before the Champions Trophy. Partly because he has played so sporadically, his recent ODI returns have been meagre, averaging 29 since 2019.

If both Stokes and Root are recalled, with Ben Duckett slotting back in as opener and Harry Brook returning, England will only have two other slots in their top six, which would be filled by Phil Salt and Jos Buttler himself. The captain expressed his wish that both Stokes and Root could return for the Champions Trophy.

The prospect of at least one of Stokes and Root returning bodes ill for Will Jacks. Many franchise coaches consider him a rare talent, yet he mustered a top score of 38 all tour. He now averages 31.2 in ODIs and just 18.2 in T20 internationals.

Who keeps?

When he was appointed white-ball coach, McCullum said that one of his aims was to stop Buttler looking “a little bit miserable”. Watching on from afar, McCullum would have been heartened by Buttler’s vigour in the T20s.

Relinquishing the gloves, Buttler relished how fielding – normally at mid off – made communication with his bowlers easier. His leadership was notably aggressive, bowling both Jofra Archer and Saqib Mahmood throughout the powerplay in the middle two T20s, and being rewarded by eight wickets across these 12 overs. Plans, like challenging Shimron Hetmyer with a bouncer just outside his eyeline, came to fruition. Buttler even briefly fielded at short leg.