Michael Vaughan will resume as England captain in Tuesday's Twenty20 game against Australia and the triangular one-day series.
The top-order batsman, out of international cricket for a year with a knee injury, takes over from stand-in skipper Andrew Flintoff, who led the team to their 5-0 Ashes drubbing.
"It's a great feeling to be back playing again and to be in the squad, but it's an added bonus to be back as captain," Vaughan told a news conference on Sunday.
"The team have had a really tough time on this tour and it's my job as captain to try and lift them and produce some competitive performances.
"We haven't had a huge amount of one-day success in the last year or so and it will be interesting to see how the team are when I first go into the dressing room."
Chairman of selectors David Graveney said Vaughan's return would provide a major lift for the side.
"It will be a fantastic boost for everyone to have Michael Vaughan back as captain for the one-day series," Graveney told the ECB web site (www.ecb.co.uk).
"It is to Andrew Flintoff's credit he was prepared to take on the responsibility of leading the test side in Australia in Michael's absence.
"But Michael is the England captain and he will now begin the task of preparing the team for the challenges that lie ahead this winter."
Vaughan, who led England to a 2-1 series win in the 2005 Ashes, has not played for his country since a test against Pakistan in Lahore in December that year.
The 32-year-old made a failed attempt at a comeback with Yorkshire last season and needed his fourth knee operation.
He has been proving his fitness in Australia and had hoped to appear in the tests but will now return in the Twenty20 game in Sydney and the triangular series also involving New Zealand which begins on Jan. 12.
Vaughan's one-day international batting record is not particularly impressive, with a top score of 90 in 74 matches and an average of only 28.
"This a fresh start for me personally and the team," Vaughan said. "I feel like a little kid who has just got back on his bike and as a team we have to start afresh. 2006 was not a great year for us but 2007 can be a lot better."
