England must stick with Jonny Bairstow through his teething trouble as a Test wicketkeeper, according to Mark Boucher.
Bairstow topped the England batting averages ahead of the final Test against South Africa but has missed chances behind the stumps in all four Tests.
He admitted earlier this month he is "a work in progress", and the Yorkshireman decided to seek the advice of South African Boucher - Test cricket's most prolific 'keeper with 532 catches and 23 stumpings.
"He just wanted to have a chat with me," the now-retired Boucher said. "I think it was after I did a stint on TV explaining the mental aspects he might be going through. For a youngster to speak to a guy who's been in the opposition side was fantastic to see.
"There is some room for improvement there. He's not a natural 'keeper but he's proved he has the goods with the bat and there is more than enough talent there for him to become a very, very good all-rounder for England.
"I think there's a big future for him at this level but he has to be as mentally tough as possible in the face of criticism.
"I don't think he needs big technical changes, they are all pretty small. It's more the mental aspect of getting over one or two dropped catches as quick as he can and not letting them affect the next one.
"The step up to Test 'keeping is quite big and he needs to close that gap, but his attitude is good enough for him to do it.
"Is he worth having in this England side? Absolutely. You don't want to mess around with his head and drop him now. That's a dangerous move to make because it risks showing a lack of confidence in a youngster's game."
England coach Trevor Bayliss believes Bairstow "could easily play in the side as a batsman", but the 26-year-old's spot as Test 'keeper does not appear under imminent threat given Bayliss recently said he would support Jos Buttler going to the Indian Premier League when England are due to play a home series with Sri Lanka.