Alastair Cook has defended his style of captaincy, but insists that he can get tough with his England players if he wants to.

The 29-year-old has come under scrutiny following his side's four successive defeats in the ongoing Ashes series against Australia.

"There's always times when you need to use it and there's always times when you need to be sympathetic too," Sky Sports News quotes him as saying when asked if he could use a Sir Alex Ferguson-style 'hair-dryer' treatment on his teammates.

"That balance is the answer to being a good leader. I hope I can be firm enough when I need to be."

"The results would suggest that I haven't [got the balance right in Australia], but you would have to ask people who see us work behind the scenes whether I get that balance wrong," added Cook. "Yes, I can get cross. But it's not my style to go ranting and raving."

The fifth and final Test of the series gets underway on Thursday.