Stokes, who stayed with the team throughout the series, warned Pope that stepping in as captain would invite more criticism. Although not surprised by the comments against Pope, Stokes was impressed with how the 26-year-old handled the added pressure and acquitted himself on the field.

“Unfortunately, it’s just English culture towards the game,” Stokes said ESPNcricinfo“There’s always someone in the firing line and obviously when you’re captain you’re more exposed to that.

“He’s won two out of two games in charge. At the end of the day, I think that’s what he’s most focused on. He obviously wants to go ahead and score runs. He has openly admitted this.

“People are very quick to jump on anything, on someone who’s in the firing line and obviously Pope comes in and is captain when I’m injured, you could say he’s an easy target there. .

“But I think he’s done a great job of leading the team. He’s done it in his own way, which I’ve encouraged him to do, to lead the team in a way that he can. Kind of like I’m trying to, but make sure you put your personal spin on it.

“I think he has done a great job tactically. Let’s not forget before the first Test against Sri Lanka that he scored fifty, fifty and a hundred (57, 121 and 51 in consecutive innings against the West Indies). Then he has not had a single good game and everyone is saying that he is out of form.

This is not the first time Stokes has fiercely defended a teammate. Even before he became a captain, he has always felt a duty to his fellow cricketer and player, especially as his stock rose to international fame.

That Stokes – a Red Bull athlete – is speaking at his gaming sphere in Shoreditch is associated with altruism. He’s here promoting his athlete collective, 4cast, while also dabbling in his new hobby, Call of Duty.

“It grew through Covid,” Stokes said of his gaming interest. “That’s where it all filtered down. Then as the world returned to a sort of normalcy, you had your tough souls who stuck with it – me being one of them. It’s just another hobby to get you away from all that. Cricket Claire (his wife) doesn’t understand, but it’s like his glass of wine at night, I jump for a few hours with my mates.

As for 4Cast, it marries Stokes’ interest in business with his belief in the power of a team. Both were overshadowed last year when Stokes acted as a key figure in negotiations between the players and the ECB, with the governing body introducing multi-year central contracts.

Stokes declined a multi-year offer, opting to keep his options open. This year, an agreement will be reached between the ECB and the England Players Partnership (TEPP) on a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which, coupled with a new round of broadcasting rights, will bring more money to the table. All being well, Stokes is likely to sign for more than 12 months this time around.

“I’ve always enjoyed the business side of things,” Stokes said of his role at 4Cast. “You see all these great athletes out there diving into the world of business. But one thing with me that I really enjoy, is we just do things that we love.

“It’s great to be able to bring athletes from different sports into one thing. Athletes are really powerful in terms of what you can achieve. When you get a large group of athletes together, it’s amazing. What opportunities are there.”