Marcus North, the former Australia middle order batter, has emerged as the leading candidate to become the new England men’s selector, with an official announcement expected in the coming days. The 46-year-old has worked as director of cricket at Durham since 2018 and was among those interviewed for the equivalent role with England four years ago – only to miss out to Rob Key in the final stages of the process. But the chance to help shape the England men’s teams as selector has now resurfaced, with North understood to have beaten the likes of Steven Finn and Darren Gough after a round of interviews this week. The England and Wales Cricket Board has declined to comment, with the contract still to be signed. North would effectively replace Luke Wright, who decided to step down at the end of the Ashes defeat in Australia citing a desire to spend more time with his family. The job is expected to change, however. Wright was not the head selector and had limited voting rights.…