Pietersen: Why I’d pick Jos Buttler over Ben Stokes to captain England against the West Indies if Joe Root can’t play

Kevin Pietersen would prefer to see Jos Buttler captain England in Joe Root's absence then Ben Stokes

Root's wife is due to give birth in July, putting the skipper at risk of missing the first of three behind-closed-doors Tests with the Windies next month.

That Test is due to take place at Hampshire’s Ageas Bowl, the fourth Test the ground has staged since its opening in 2001.

Root has already gone on record as saying he would back Stokes, his vice-captain, to do a good job in his absence, but Pietersen is wary about the mercurial all-rounder assuming even more responsibility.

Ben Stokes celebrates England's astonishing Ashes victory at Headingley last summer. Now he could skipper his country against the West Indies if Joe Root is forced to miss a game due to his wife giving birth.

The three-times Ashes winner was speaking from experience, having not enjoyed his short stint as captain in 2008, and would prefer Jos Buttler to take over.

‘Do I want to see Ben Stokes change from who he is and the current player he is? Probably not, Jos Buttler would be my guy,’ the former Hampshire batsman said.

‘The entertainers and the guys that have to carry the mantle in the team sometimes aren't the best captains and sometimes struggle with the extra added pressure.’

That is certainly the case when you look at the captaincy record of legendary all-rounders Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff, as well as Pietersen himself. Those three men skippered England in 28 Tests and won just twice - both wins recorded by Flintoff.

‘As a player you are looked at completely differently until that phone call comes and you are announced as the Test captain,’ Pietersen continued.

‘Responsibilities change, communication changes, the way in which you carry yourself in the dressing room changes.

‘I struggled with it, I absolutely hated it and I was rubbish.

‘You have to change and I couldn't command the respect of the dressing room, you say something and it is frowned upon, it is a completely different story.’

Root has skippered England in 39 Tests since taking over from Alistair Cook three years ago, winning 20 of them.

England begin their summer of cricket, which has been seriously affected by the coronavirus pandemic, on July 8 with the first of three Tests against the West Indies in Hampshire.

Further matches against Pakistan, Australia and Ireland are all pencilled in, but they are all likely to be played in front of empty stadiums.

And Pietersen says that will present Root's side with a different challenge.

‘I would rather be in the broadcaster chair than in the players' chair because entertainers like atmosphere and you are going to have to build your own atmosphere and dig as deep as you can to try your best and perform in front of a whisper,’ he added.

‘It is going to be hard, especially for cricket.

‘Six hours, when you're in the field and guys are batting and you're 100 overs into an innings, England are going to have to dig deep because it is going to feel like a warm-up game, with no one watching.’