Whenever I go through any sort of bad patch, I remind myself that part of the game of cricket is God testing you.

I do believe in God.

I do a lot of free weights in the gym, with lots of squats, lunges and push-pull exercises to help develop strength and power.

As a player I think you naturally think long term and think what is the schedule in the next year or so.

That was my upbringing: you treat people with respect.

Make sure you look after people around you and it holds you in good stead going forward in terms of leadership. Look at all the best leaders and they have those qualities.

I played my first game of adult cricket at about eight or nine when the fifth team were short and picked me to field and bat at No 11. From then I just got the bug and wanted to play as often as possible.

From a young age I've always known my game pretty well and coming from a club like Yorkshire you are generally taught to say what you think. If you don't say what you think then someone else does.

There is no point having team meetings where no one speaks because you don't learn anything.

I like to think I'll be quite instinctive as a leader.

I love playing five days of cricket; personally, I think it's the best format.

It's not about how many games we win with me as captain, it's about us being consistently getting better over a long period of time and looking to be that number one side in the world.

After a test match it's very easy to make selections, once you've seen exactly how the surface is going to play.

I'd love to go and visit Pakistan. It would be a great opportunity to go and play there personally. Unfortunately, it's not my decision to make, but it looks a wonderful country to go and play cricket in.

I know how important it is that test cricket is my main focus.

I just need to find the best version of myself. Find improvements to what I've already got, rather than trying to remodel my game.

The great thing about T20 is that it only takes one performance. One piece of individual brilliance can win a game and that can change the whole way you approach a tournament.

I just love playing for England, whether it's opening or middle order.

I'm known as tidy, I like to keep my stuff in order.

My first bat was a Duncan Fearnley 405, size two. I was aged about four. I loved that bat, such great memories. I gave it to a family member and never saw it again.

I have a short, home-made armguard because I don't like the regular ones. I'd wear that on a lively pitch. I don't use a chest guard because I find it too restrictive.

Michael Vaughan gave me his old thigh pad when he retired. It was in my kitbag for a long time.

The dressing-room environment is very difficult to replicate, camaraderie is very important.

There is nothing wrong with being gay.

Sometimes people say things on the field that they might regret, but they should stay on the field.

I wouldn't say I give the hairdryer treatment but when we've not performed well you have to make people aware.

I was pretty much a goody-two shoes at school - a bit boring, didn't get in trouble with teachers - it was classical Yorkshire: a lot of respect to your elders. Once I started playing cricket that sort of slipped away.

I think I can be quite cheeky at times.

I can remember that 2005 Ashes as a kid and being really absorbed in that whole series at 14 years old. It was magical.

Every player wants to see the game grow and flourish so it would be great to be able to help do that by achieving something very special.

In the past, I found myself on occasions not playing the game at the speed that suits me. I need to make sure I'm in control of what is going on out there as much as I can.

I have been given a fantastic opportunity to captain the Test side and will continue to work very hard at doing my best at that.

It's tough to take, losing the Ashes. It's bitterly disappointing.

You are not going to win many games if you start behind.

Every game against Australia matters.

We have to be prepared to play some attritional cricket at times.

Time has never really been an issue in Test cricket, especially in the modern game where things naturally move quicker than they have in the past.

You don't win games by batting long periods of time.

You're always trying to find ways of getting guys in positions in which they will be comfortable.

All we can do as players and ambassadors of the game is try to set an example, playing in the right way and make it as entertaining as possible for people watching.

I want to make contributions that help us win Test matches rather than put us in positions where we have to play extremely well to win.

To score runs you have to be pragmatic.

The important thing is to stay very strong with my natural game.

Coming out of the Ashes in 2013-14 and the World Cup in 2015 I realised how much I wanted to be a force in international cricket.

You learn from the mistakes you make.

This game can be brutal. As soon as you get comfortable, it bites you. You have to stay on it all the time.

Every now and then you might have to change things around. It's not something that is good to do a lot - especially with your batting - but every now and then, I don't think it's a bad thing.

There's always things you want to get better at and learn from but that's something that's quite hard to instil in players.

You try to make sure you have respect for the opposition but still play to win and play hard cricket.

I'm just trying to score as many runs as I can each time. The more I can make over a hundred, the better.