Stuart Broad backed Alastair Cook yesterday to find his form again as the team prepare for the first Test against India at Trent Bridge tomorrow.

The England captain’s best score in the recent series loss to Sri Lanka was 28, extending his run without a Test hundred to almost 14 months.

The Essex man’s captaincy has also come under scrutiny with the likes of Shane Warne, Geoffrey Boycott and Kevin Pietersen all criticising the 29-year-old in the wake of a recent run of poor results.

But it is his form with the bat that will draw the most focus in Nottingham, although paceman Broad insists the recent lean run is just part of the game.

“He’s obviously worked hard in the nets as Cooky does, he’s always first in and last out,” Broad said.

“He likes to hit a lot of balls pre-series and that’s no different this week.

“He just needs that change of luck, all cricketers go through it from time to time and it’s Cooky’s turn.

“We know he’s world class, we know he’s played over 100 Test matches with the record he’s got and there’s no doubt that will change for him.”

The series defeat to Sri Lanka was the first time England had lost to the tourists on home soil but Broad insists confidence in the camp is high as they prepare to take on an India team they beat 4-0 in 2011.

“We lost the series against Sri Lanka but we played a lot of good cricket in that series,” he said.

“We did some brilliant stuff with some debut hundreds and that sort of thing.

“The confidence is good coming into this series.

“Obviously, the last time India were here it was probably the best series we have played for years but a lot of that team has changed.

“Some players can take some confidence from that but the majority of players have changed from that series so this is a completely fresh series. 

“We’ve got to restart and go again.”