FORMER Essex and England cricketer Mark Ilott has backed young prodigy Tom Westley to become the county’s new captain.

Ilott, who had a hugely successful 14 year spell at Essex between 1988 and 2002, says Westley is an exciting talent and one who has shown he can handle playing at the top level for his county.

However, he also said Jaik Mickleburgh would be a good choice to succeed James Foster, who was relieved of his duties as captain on Tuesday.

Ilott, who took 633 first-class wickets in his career, as well as 12 test wickets for England, is now the Head of Cricket at the St Albans School, in Hertfordshire.

And he says it is difficult to judge who would be a good replacement without knowing the reason Essex took the captaincy from Foster.

“I think Westley would be a good choice for Silvers (Chris Silverwood),” said Ilott. “He has proven himself as one of the senior players in the team but it depends what the coach wants.

“My initial reaction to the news was ‘poor old Fozzy’. We don’t know why the decision has been taken yet so it is difficult to say but he is a very good cricketer and I don’t know if he is supposed to have done anything wrong.

“There is no doubt the results haven’t been great in recent times and maybe the decision was taken because of that, and to freshen things up. I guess the committee might have wanted to look at someone a bit younger but it depends of the circumstances. Cricket, like most sports, is a fickle game.

“I am not sure it (the captain) will be Ravi (Bopara) as he has international commitments overseas and so does (Ryan) ten Doeschate but they are senior players who have had success in the game.”

Ilott, who has played five matches for England, said an important consideration when making the decision was who the captaincy would benefit most on the field.

Current Essex chairman Ronnie Irani was the skipper back when Ilott was playing and he said he was concerned when Irani was handed the responsibility that it would detract from his game – a thought he added that proved to be false.

“You want it to enhance the player,” said Ilott. “I remember when Ronnie was captain, I was concerned about what the captaincy would do to his game. He was such a key player with the bat and the ball but he pushed on and he showed what a brilliant player he was.

“Someone like Jaik Mickleburgh would be an interesting choice as I think he is a good player and he has been at the club for a while.

“You want whoever is chosen to have the ability to inspire players at the club, and have the potential to attract good players from other counties. It is important to have that draw and there are some candidates that have that. It is not all roses at Essex at the moment but I believe they can turn the corner.”

Ilott, whose son has represented Middlesex at age group level, says he keeps in touch with goings on at the county, while he admits he can rarely get down to watch as he lives in Hertfordshire.

But he said he hopes Chris Silverwood, who was appointed first-team coach a fortnight ago, can take the team onto the next level.

“I hope he does well,” he said. “He is obviously a good coach and one that knows the club inside-out so good luck to him.

“I guess one thing he has to think about is how he is going to keep hold of players as that is as important as bringing new players in.

“I remember we lost Nick Knight back when I was playing and he was a very important player.

“Reece Topley left for Hampshire this year so keeping players and bringing through talented players is something I am sure Essex are focusing on.

“I hope they enjoy a successful season and really push on under whoever they choose to be captain.”