Ben Stokes has called on the Marylebone Cricket Club to reconsider its ticket pricing, joining a chorus of former and current players to have criticised the cost faced by fans before the opening Test of the summer, which will start against New Zealand at a not‑quite‑sold‑out Lord’s on Thursday.

“One thing we have always received as an England cricket team is amazing support,” Stokes said. “The ticket prices are something that I think is going to have to be looked at properly. We want to be attracting people to come and watch us because of the cricket that we play and how successful we are, but you have to look at how much it’s going to cost someone to get into the ground. I don’t set the prices but I think it does need to be looked at.”

For the first three days of the opening Test the cheapest adult ticket with an unrestricted view costs £70, rising to £160 in the best areas and with tickets for under-16s discounted only in the lowest categories. While the cheapest seats still available for the first two days cost £110, tickets even in the cheapest price brackets were still available for Saturday and Sunday at the time of going to press.

The former England captain, Michael Vaughan, has criticised the “astronomical prices”, while Stuart Broad said he was “sure the prices will have to adjust to the cost of living”. The MCC admitted it was experiencing “a reduction in our usual expected attendance numbers” but insisted its prices “represent good value to watch top-class international cricket at one of the world’s most iconic sporting venues”.

Those present will anticipate seeing some evidence of the impact that Stokes and England’s new Test coach, Brendon McCullum, have already had on the team, though the captain warned that “it’s going to take time” for what he called their “laid back, go-and-express-yourself way” to filter through to performances. But he is confident it will help the team’s younger batters, such as Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley, to play to their undeniable potential.

Pope’s promotion to No 3, where he has never batted in his professional career, has been criticised by some but Stokes expects the 24‑year‑old to flourish.

“As soon as I took the role on, one of the things that I made very clear is that I wanted him in my Test team, and then it was just about making a decision where we see him fitting in that batting order,” Stokes said.

“I see him having a huge future in an England shirt. We’ve told him: ‘You’re an amazing player, you’ve got the backing, and we want you to be playing.’ It’s just trying to get the best out of these guys and making them forget everything that’s gone on before.”

Describing the team’s new era as a “blank canvas” rather than a reset – “There has been talk around that word which is something I don’t particularly like” – Stokes said one of his key challenges is to enable players to leave behind them a miserable collective run of form, during which they have won just one of their past 17 Tests.

“That is actually quite a tough thing to really make guys believe,” he said. “We acknowledged the last two years, everything we’ve had to go through as a team with Covid and the restrictions we’ve been living under and playing more cricket than anybody else. I just didn’t think we could really move on without acknowledging that. [Then] making guys believe that you’re not going to be having any black marks next to your name if something goes wrong. Because it’s not going to happen overnight, what we want. It’s going to take time, but it’s just making guys believe that we’ve got your back.”

Stokes could be aided by having Moeen Ali back, the all-rounder having told McCullum he would consider a return. “Playing for England is amazing, especially at home, and it’s always exciting when there is a new chapter,” Moeen, who turns 35 this month, said. “We’ve had a chat and maybe in the future, potential tours or whatever, who knows?”