Friday 17 February 2017 13:49, UK
New Test captain Joe Root must mould England into his own side as quickly as possible, says Nasser Hussain.
Root will not lead England onto the field until their next Test in July after succeeding Alastair Cook as skipper.
While Hussain says the 26-year-old would be naive not to draw on Cook's vast leadership experience, he says Root must have the confidence to develop his own style.
"I was very lucky when I took over - I had Michael Atherton and Alec Stewart in the side, two excellent ex-captains to just lean on every now and then," said the former England captain.
"If there's any advice Root wants from Cook I'm sure he'll just ask him his opinion but eventually Joe will realise that he has got to make this his team.
"One failing of Alastair's, right at the start of his captaincy, was that he didn't quickly change that side that he inherited from Andrew Strauss into his team.
"Joe Root must quickly realise that this is his job and he lives and dies with the decisions that he makes with his team."
Root - who faces Test series against South Africa, West Indies and Australia this year - has captained in just four first-class matches to date.
Hussain says only time will tell what type of skipper Root will be but believes that in all-rounder Ben Stokes, he has the ideal vice-captain.
"Don't be confused; because he's a certain type of person, don't assume that's the sort of captain he's going to be," said Hussain.
"Joe likes to take the game to the opposition as a batsman; he likes to get things moving quickly so that may be his way.
"But it depends on what sort of a side he has. The last two captains have been fairly defensive but they've been very, very successful winning four Ashes series between them.
"Strauss took England to number one in the world by being a fairly defensive, regimented captain. So it depends on what the selectors give Root and in what direction he wants to take that side."
Hussain added: "I think he's got an exceptional vice-captain in Ben Stokes that he will lean on and the two of them will take England into a new era.
"I couldn't think of a better person to have as vice-captain than Ben Stokes - someone you trust, someone who will say it exactly as it is."
Watch Nasser's interview with new England Test captain Joe Root in full at 6.45pm on Thursday on Sky Sports 1.
