Mark Butcher has backed the hosts to come good against Australia in the upcoming Ashes series but said that Michael Clarke is ahead of Alastair Cook in terms of "forward thinking" as a leader.
Notwithstanding England's recent success against New Zealand, Cook's captaincy has continuously come under the scanner with Australian all-rounder Shane Watson also taking a dig at the leader's lack of pro-activeness. Even Butcher believes that Cook lacks on the initiative front.
"That's not an accusation that only Watson will be throwing at. That has been one of Cook's perceived weaknesses as a leader. For sure Cook is not as forward thinking as perhaps Michael Clarke would be as a captain. Having said that, you are quite beholden to how your bowlers fare," Butcher, who is a guest analyst on ESPNcricinfo for the Ashes, told PTI in an exclusive interview.
"But at the end of the day England have won the Ashes series under Andrew Strauss, who was pretty conservative. So hope it doesn't come down to the setting of the field to win the series," the former England batsman added.
England not only drew level the two-match Test series against New Zealand but also won the ODIs 3-2. Butcher is hoping the home team will take this confidence into the Ashes as well.
"The last month or so this limited-over cricket has certainly given more reason for optimism.
"Young players, Ben Stokes in particular, Joe Root have really impressed and there is renewed optimism around what they can achieve this summer," Butcher, who represented England in 71 Tests during his seven-year international career between 1997-2004, said.
Butcher also opined that Ashes is still the biggest draw in England despite the rise of various T20 leagues and many more sporting rivalries.
"Ashes is certainly the oldest rivalry on the cricket field. Traditionally it stands apart. It's played more often than any other series between two countries.
"But particularly in England it's difficult to compare anything with how the Indian public will see any series because cricket is the no. 1 sport in India, where cricket is played and written all the year round.
"But Ashes is the only time when cricket gets into the front pages of the English newspaper," he said.