Brian O’Driscoll has backed Wales flanker Sam Warburton to retain the British and Irish Lions captaincy for this summer’s tour of New Zealand after “he answered his critics in emphatic style” during the recent Six Nations championship.

Wales may have finished second bottom after winning just two of their five matches, but that does not do Warburton’s performances justice as the Cardiff Blues back-row excelled in the games against England and Ireland, two of their toughest fixtures during the tournament.

After giving up the Wales captaincy at the start of the year, 28-year-old Warburton appeared to flourish without the extra pressure, as lock Alun Wyn Jones took on the burden under interim head coach Rob Howley. The change also swung the Lions captaincy in Jones’s favour, but questions arose of his ability to lead the side and of his decision-making during the Six Nations, which has led to calls – including from O’Driscoll – for Warburton to lead the tour party for a second time.

“I believe there have been a few players throwing their hat in the ring for captaincy on the Lions tour,” said 2005 Lions skipper O’Driscoll. “The frequently asked question is, ‘What do you want from a tour captain and a team captain?’, and I would say that ideally I want them to be one and the same.

“In a perfect world your tour captain is the first name down on your Test sheet. However if that's not the case you need a leader that would have the ability to accept the disappointment of not being selected while still performing his role and getting the best out of the squad.

“Sam Warburton has become the bookies favourite (and rightly so in my opinion) for the title after some impressive performances over the past couple of months. With some question marks over his future in the Wales team, he answered his critics in emphatic style with a big tournament, in his less favoured position of blindside flanker.”

Warburton was deployed by Howley as a No 6 to ensure both he and Justin Tipuric were squeezed into the same back-row, with Dan Lydiate unavailable due to injury that has also robbed his chances of going on the summer tour. However, Tipuric’s performances over the last seven weeks were not anything to shout about, and it’s led to the argument for returning Warburton to the openside and bringing in CJ Stander of Ireland, following his impressive form throughout the Six Nations.

British and Irish Lions captain candidates Show all 6 1 /6 British and Irish Lions captain candidates British and Irish Lions captain candidates Alun Wyn Jones Jones is probably still the leading candidate for the captaincy, even if his, and Wales’, Six Nations was not what they were hoping for. Jones took the Welsh armband from Sam Warburton for the championship but at times looked uneasy at making a call, such as when he was overruled when Wales opted to go for the corner against Scotland, rather than taking the shot at three points. Jones captained the Lions in the deciding third Test against Australia in 2013 and is a guaranteed starter if fit – something Gatland is keen for his captain to be, although not a necessity. AFP/Getty Images British and Irish Lions captain candidates Sam Warburton Had Wales not finished fifth in the championship with three defeats, there is a good chance Warburton would have been named player of the tournament. The way he reacted to losing the Wales captaincy and moving to blindside flanker has been phenomenal and he is now the bookies’ favourite after his performances and having already led the Lions to a tour victory. Of Warburton’s chances, Gatland said: “He's a different captain to some other players. He leads by example. He doesn't say a lot but he has had that experience. He's one of the guys potentially in contention, definitely.” However, he has been so good without the burden of the armband, would giving it to him hinder his performances? Getty Images British and Irish Lions captain candidates Dylan Hartley Before his red card for Northampton in December, Hartley was the frontrunner for the armband but now his place on the plane is not even assured. For England, Jamie George has impressed and could usurp his captain’s position over the next 12 months, with Hartley arguably not even the third most impressive Hooker the home nations boasted during this year’s Six Nations. However, his grit and fire has been one of the reasons for England’s success under Eddie Jones and it is that sort of personality which could be vital in the hotbed of New Zealand. Getty Images British and Irish Lions captain candidates Rory Best The way Best led Ireland to ending England’s unbeaten run shows that he has the ability to motivate the players around him in tough and gritty situations. He has also captained a side to a win over the All Blacks, the only candidate who is able to say that. Best is certainly a viable candidate but the question mark that remains hanging over him is if he is good enough to start at hooker against the All Blacks? Hartley, Best, George and Wales’ Ken Owens are all in with a shout. AFP/Getty Images British and Irish Lions captain candidates Owen Farrell Farrell was player of the tournament after a stunning Six Nations. His kicking is up there with Leigh Halfpenny’s as amongst the best in the world and he has the right mentality of a captain having been schooled under Eddie Jones. Farrell looks certain to start at 12 for the Lions and would make a fierce captain. However, having not captained an international side from the start, how would he fare leading the most intense tour the Lions have embarked on? It is a tough challenge for the most weathered of captains, never mind a novice. AFP/Getty Images British and Irish Lions captain candidates Conor Murray An outside shout for captain but the way he controls the game from around the ruck shows his importance to the Lions. He, like Best, has experience of beating the All Blacks and of a winning Lions Tour (like everyone on this list, other than Hartley). He has captaincy experience but while he was a certain starter a month ago, the performances of Rhys Webb have given Gatland a real decision to make. He said he wants to pick his squad first and then his captain and that could go against Murray in the decision-making process if Webb is now considered ahead of him. Getty

O’Driscoll, who also toured with the Lions in 2001, 2009 and 2013 and had such a memorable debut against Australia 16 years ago by scoring a try from the halfway line, skippered the Lions against the All Blacks in 2005, only to suffer a dislocated shoulder in the opening two minutes following a spear tackle by Tana Umaga and Kevin Mealamu.

Yet he knows that the Northern Hemisphere side will need to be at their most lethal in attack in order to defeat the No 1 ranked side in the world, and believes that Scotland’s Stuart Hogg should get the nod at full-back ahead of Wales’s Leigh Halfpenny in order to maximise the danger that Warren Gatland’s side can pose the world champions.

O'Driscoll believes Hogg should start ahead of Halfpenny at full-back (Getty) (Getty Images)

“Stuart Hogg has been very impressive - particularly in attack,” he added. “His ball handling has improved out of sight and has been added to an already impressive strike running game. He along with Jonny Gray have been Scotland’s stand out performers.

“Liam Williams along with a rejuvenated George North continues to be the one to watch in Wales. He's tough as a nut, has nice skills & possesses that sneaky speed - all attributes that will be called upon playing the All Blacks.”