Rob Key’s appointment represents a gamble for rudderless England | Mark Ramprakash

The new managing director of cricket impressed at Sky but his lack of experience is a concern for an ECB lacking leadership

Rob Key is someone I have known for a very, very, long time. He’s been involved in cricket through his career; as a player, as a captain, and then with Sky, where he has become a prominent voice, somewhat surprisingly.

I say surprisingly because they tend to hire former England captains for their main punditry and analysis roles, so Rob was a little bit of an outlier in that sense. But he has grown into the role very well and often comes up with thought-provoking conversations.