London: David Ivon Gower, a former captain of England and an iconic left-hander, spoke to The Telegraph over two sessions at Lord's.

Gower, now 61, hasn't at all changed over the years. Soft-spoken, articulate and exceedingly warm with friends.

Excerpts...

Q The world has changed and social media is a big tool now. Could it be a distraction for the present-day cricketers?

A It's a question of self discipline. To talk of this England team, some are more active than the others on Twitter. If, at the end of the day, they wish to post something, it's their choice. Left to me, I'd get away from it all, relax, think of the next day... Be with my mates. It's an individual thing.

Q Would criticism on social media upset cricketers?

A Maybe, they'll say it's part of their lives and they have to live with it.

Q You're not active on Twitter?

A I do wake up from time to time, but not very active. Not being so is really being me. It's fun at times, or I may get a question every now and then. If I want to say something, I'd pride myself on authoring the content. Many cricketers from India have millions of followers. Maybe, they employ people to put out tweets. Putting out content is the easy part. The difficulty could arise in dealing with the responses.

Q If still playing, how would you have responded to trolls?

A Look, if I had a bad day and came back to the hotel room and read something critical, it would be painful. However, if the judgement had been accurate, there would be nothing to complain about. We only had the Media in our time and, over the years, I'd developed a method of understanding and not taking things to heart. If I'd made a mistake, well, I'd be the first to know. If the next day's reports confirmed that, it would be fair enough. Today, complete strangers just get at you. Had I been playing now, I'd probably switch off social media. I would certainly have done so as captain. If I had a poor day, I wouldn't like to switch on my phone and find 5,000 people calling me all sorts of names (on Twitter).

Q Would you have advised your team too to do the same?

A Every individual's psychology is different. It would be a matter of personal choice.

Q There was no question of trolls in your time, but do you remember something offensive from some stranger?

A It was during a six-a-side charity match in the middle of a bad summer in 1989... Some bloke cleaning the windows on probably the 20th floor of an adjoining building, shouted something at me.

Q What did he say?

A Wouldn't like to repeat it. Let me assure you it wasn't complimentary... That was one bloke, imagine what would have happened in 2018. I suppose the only sane way to deal with the negatives of social media is to switch off. Sport is about protecting your self-confidence... When out in the middle, you wouldn't want to think of what some stranger said or wrote.

Q Active on Facebook?

A Again, not very active. Ninety per cent of my Facebook time is for genuine friends. I certainly wouldn't like to be friends with complete strangers. Why would I want to be? This is where it goes bonkers... I remember first meeting you many, many years ago. We did not need Facebook or Twitter.

Q Harbhajan Singh, for one, has gone on record to say that social media must be used responsibly... Your thoughts?

A Everything should be used responsibly. There are benefits, including commercially. Some do use the platforms to monetise... Statistics here have revealed the huge amount of time people spend on their phones, either using their fingers or they have the earphones on. It's alarming.

Q Are you still involved with wildlife charities?

A Yes. I'm in close touch with the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation in the UK. I have been friends with the family for 25-30 years... David himself passed away last year... David was one of the best artists around and specialised in paintings of African and Indian wildlife... I'm a patron of SAVE (registered in Australia), which focuses on saving the African rhino, and I'm also a patron of TUSK in the UK... My interest in wildlife goes back to childhood, perhaps because of my upbringing. Wildlife-related work has been an avenue away from cricket, when I don't have TV commitments.

Q Well, where do you stand on Brexit?

A I'd voted to remain in the European Union (EU) and I did so because that, for me, was more sensible and less complicated.

Q Isn't it ironical that some of those who voted to get out of the EU now want to remain...

A The problem with a binary referendum is that every 'yes' to get out of the EU wasn't for the same reason. Different people had very different reasons for wanting to be out. Maybe those who said 'yes' were thinking of the glory days of the British Empire. Some could have been thinking of putting an end to laws coming from the European Parliament in Brussels. Different reasons.

Q Should the June 2016 referendum have then been better presented/ phrased?

A If you mean a referendum with multiple questions, then that would have been completely unworkable. With the benefit of hindsight, the referendum clearly was a mistake.

Q Is there a need for a fresh referendum?

A No... The conundrum really is that even after two years no one knows what Brexit really means. Brexit has to be practical and a lot of people are Europhiles. The vote, let's not forget, was in the region of 52-48 - by no means unanimous. I'm afraid we are heading for years of uncertainty.

Q Has Brexit been handled well by Theresa May's Conservative government?

A No, but it has been handled even worse by the Opposition! I don't think anyone alive could have handled Brexit well. No solution is going to please everybody.

Q Are you a Conservative or do you support Labour?

A Conservative. We always inherit our politics at home. Sometimes, there's a change possibly because of a greater understanding of the subject... Today, what I'm fearful of is that if this whole Brexit thing unravels badly and, because of the broadening of the Right-Wing, the Conservative party gets weakened and a Labour government comes in, then we'll have a Communist chancellor (John Martin McDonnell) waiting to ruin the country.

Q Politically, are you very conscious?

A I'm aware of what happens. But, as with Twitter, I'm not active... I wouldn't tweet any thought on politics as that would destroy my life.

Q As a TV commentator you've consistently been praised for the understated manner in which you go about your business. There's that graceful touch on TV too...

A I hope I make my point in a nice way. Privately, there are times when I make my point in not so nice a way.

Q A related question... You conduct yourself with dignity...

A I believe in what I do, which is a very good way to be. You can make a point without shouting... In whatever you do, credibility matters. On TV, there are different voices, but my way is my way. So far, it has worked.

Q Are you too obsessed with the Royals? Most of England is...

A I'm a great admirer of the Royal family, even though plenty in our country aren't. I respect history, respect the system and I respect what the Royals do - from the Queen to the younger ones. The latter have been showing that there's a human side to the monarchy. In the last decade or so, the monarchy has opened up and the recent marriage of Prince Harry with Meghan Markle, for example, had been brilliant.

Q Values you hold dear?

A One thing is that you should be honest with yourself... As a batsman, I liked to portray calmness. If I showed anxiety, then that would give the bowlers the upper hand... Generally, if you're always acting and pretending to be somebody you aren't, then you're complicating life. But, yes, there are times you are polite because you have to be.

Q Outside cricket, who has had the biggest influence on you?

A The late David... He balanced everything beautifully: Passion for wildlife, career as an artist, family life... Such a nice human being. He was the man to learn values from.

Q Last one... You had a bad fall out with Graham Gooch towards the end of your career. Did the two of you get back on talking terms?

A (Grins) Yes, yes... We've grown to be on good terms since. I'm not one who holds grudges for a lifetime.