Sir Andrew Strauss has issued a stark warning to England Test captain Ben Stokes, asserting that his batting form will be crucial to the longevity of his leadership as the team faces a “high stakes” summer.

His comments come as England prepare to resume red-ball duties against New Zealand at Lord’s on Thursday, nearly five months after a tumultuous 4-1 Ashes defeat.

While Stokes’ captaincy remained secure after a winter review, his individual batting performance has been a concern.

Despite improved bowling returns over the past 18 months, the all-rounder averaged a mere 18.40 with the bat in Australia, registering just one century across his last 46 innings.

With Stokes turning 35 on day one of the first Test, head coach Brendon McCullum has indicated a tactical shift, dropping the captain to number seven, swapping places with wicketkeeper Jamie Smith.

Sir Andrew, who captained England in 50 Tests, stressed Stokes must rediscover his run-scoring prowess to solidify his captaincy.

“It’s high stakes, but the stakes are always high and I don’t think you’d want it any other way,” he told the Press Association.

He elaborated: “I know the feeling when you are coming towards the back end of your career and you’re increasingly involved in strategic decisions, trying to get the best out of your team. But you also need to focus on yourself and make sure you are still performing well.”

Such a failure, Strauss cautioned, could “sap his energy and then it might be something that curtails the length of time that he can carry on for.”

He stressed: “His real challenge is to make sure he performs on the field, which means keeping himself fit and finding a batting method that allows him to put in those incredible match-winning contributions that he’s managed over the course of his career. I don’t think we saw a lot of that in Australia.”

Despite the challenges, Strauss noted: “Ben has got such great respect as a captain and his players want to play for him, so I think the question of how he can evolve things will really get his juices flowing.”

Beyond England’s Test fortunes, Sir Andrew also spoke about the enduring legacy of his late wife, Ruth, and the significant progress of the foundation established in her name.

Since the tragic death of his wife from non-smoking lung cancer in 2018, the Ruth Strauss Foundation has become a beacon of support, raising over £4 million, assisting more than 5,000 families grappling with an incurable parental diagnosis, and training over 1,750 healthcare professionals.

In a significant development, the foundation has announced a merger of its activities and staff with Maggie’s, a charity renowned for its network of 27 dedicated cancer care centres across the UK. Strauss will continue his vital work as an honorary patron of Maggie’s, leveraging the sport that defined his career for continued support.

“The cricket community has given us this extraordinary platform to tell our story, to explain what we do and bring to life some of those individual battles that the families are going through,” he explained.

Strauss highlighted the growing significance of the “Red For Ruth” initiative: “I think Red For Ruth has become part of the cricket calendar. It’s not just a day, it’s a moment where cricket combines with its incredible reach to provide social impact and to actually do something more than just providing entertainment for people.”

He expressed his ambition for the future: “We want to take what we’ve done now and make it bigger and better over time. I was very fortunate, as a result of my career and those amazing times I had in an England shirt, to have a public profile to launch the foundation and I’m incredibly proud of the fact that we’re now helping thousands of families that are going through this ordeal.”

The Ruth Strauss Foundation provides crucial resources and support, including one-on-one counselling, peer support groups, and online materials for families navigating an incurable cancer diagnosis.

On Friday 5th June, Lord’s, the Home of Cricket, will once again turn red for #RedforRuth to raise awareness and vital funds to help families facing incurable cancer. Further information can be found at www.ruthstraussfoundation.com.