Ben Stokes: England Test captain discusses future of cricket with Lord Botham

Stokes has revolutionized the way Test cricket is played since taking over the England captaincy at the start of the summer, with his ultra-positive swashbuckling approach leading to nine wins from 10 games in charge.

Lord Botham had a similar take on the all-action game during his England career and is widely regarded as one of the best all-around players to ever play it sport.

As part of his guest editor appearance on BBC Radio 4's Today program on Monday, Lord Botham spoke to Stokes about his mission to transform the test of cricket, the rise of the game of cricket, their heroic performances at Headingley and the importance of putting your mental health first.

Transforming the test of cricket

When Stokes took over as Test captain in April, England had won just one of their last 17 Tests, including a 4- 0 in Australia and a defeat in the West Indies. The following month, former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum was appointed as England manager. Together they have attempted to change the way Test cricket is played, creating an atmosphere that allows players to express themselves and provide entertainment that will keep fans coming.

Stokes: "Test cricket has been brought up in a way that I don't like. It's losing fan attention with all the new formats and franchise competitions We understand there There are so many opportunities for players outside of test cricket But to me it's so important to the game I love playing test cricket cricket and felt we could do something different.

"Remove result from mindset is a great place to start. Focus on making every day fun. Not letting people know what is going to happen. If people get excited about what they're about to watch, you've already won before a ball is played."

Botham: "It's about putting butts on the seats. People now want to watch the game. You will lose the odd game but people...