All posts tagged: McCullum

England hoping Jofra Archer is available for 2nd Test vs NZ, says Brendon McCullum

England hoping Jofra Archer is available for 2nd Test vs NZ, says Brendon McCullum

Published by Webster

3 min readJun 8, 2026 10:23 PM IST England head coach Brendon McCullum is hopeful of ace fast bowler Jofra Archer being available to play for their second Test against New Zealand at The Oval, having missed the first due to the quick turnover after the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL). Archer’s decision to skip the first Test due to playing in the IPL was a topic of much controversy. “We are hopeful he will be available for the second Test. Then we will work out conditions-wise where we are at,” McCullum told reporters after England won the first test by 115 runs. “He is following a plan and we completely trust Jof. He has shown in the past that he gets himself ready based on the plans we get together and come up with. He has always turned up in the condition we want from him.” In Archer’s absence, Gus Atkinson, Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue combined to take 19 wickets in England’s low-scoring win at Lord’s on Sunday, and McCullum indicated Archer would …

‘Need to be quite malleable, depending on surfaces’: McCullum after ENG beat NZ | Cricket News

‘Need to be quite malleable, depending on surfaces’: McCullum after ENG beat NZ | Cricket News

Published by Webster

3 min readJun 7, 2026 07:11 PM IST England head coach Brendon McCullum was a relieved man with his team winning the Test against New Zealand on Sunday at Lord’s. The result comes at a time when the England cricket team has been going through a rough patch after losing the Ashes 4-1 to Australia earlier in the year. Against New Zealand too, most of their batters could do little when facing a pitch that was difficult to bat on with seamers getting all the purchase. But they ultimately held on as they went 1-0 up in the 3-match series. “We need to be quite malleable, depending on the surfaces we get. Nothing needs to be so binary to play one certain way. We need to be able to be adaptable and to adjust when required. I thought conversations that our boys had throughout the Test match, from a coach’s point of view, were fantastic. There was a real communication unfolding, and I think that allowed us to be slightly more adaptable when we needed. …

Why Michael Vaughan is ‘staggered’ that England head coach Brendon McCullum arrives in country just 5 days before 1st NZ Test on June 4 | Cricket News

Why Michael Vaughan is ‘staggered’ that England head coach Brendon McCullum arrives in country just 5 days before 1st NZ Test on June 4 | Cricket News

Published by Webster

3 min readUpdated: Mar 25, 2026 04:50 PM IST Former England skipper Michael Vaughan said that post the heavy defeat to Australia in the Ashes, he found it staggering that head coach Brendon McCullum wasn’t in the country already in order to watch county cricket and scout talents from there in preparation for the New Zealand test series, set to start in June. “Now we are told there will be a greater emphasis on attention to detail. If that is the case, then Brendon should be here early this summer watching county cricket and meeting people face-to-face to rebuild bridges because a lot of people in the county system were more than happy to see England get royally beaten in Australia and that cannot be right,” Vaughan wrote for his column in The Telegraph. “McCullum is the highest-paid international coach in the world so expecting him to arrive in England earlier than five days before the first Test is surely the bare minimum. Instead he is having a Zoom call with the county directors of …

Why Michael Vaughan is ‘staggered’ that England head coach Brendon McCullum arrives in country just 5 days before 1st NZ Test on June 4 | Cricket News

‘Leopards don’t change their spots’: Geoffrey Boycott slams ECB over ‘worst Ashes tour’, warns England on sticking with Brendon McCullum | Cricket News

Published by Webster

4 min readMar 24, 2026 12:21 PM IST Former England captain and legendary batter Geoffrey Boycott has slammed the ECB chief executive Richard Gould and managing director Rob Key for the review into England’s Ashes defeat earlier in the summer. The 85-year-old questioned the process behind concluding that head coach Brendon McCullum would continue in his role, adding that Gould and Key would not win too many supporters to keep the former New Zealand captain in the job. “The worst pre-planned Ashes tour in my lifetime, and nobody is held to account or to blame? In the famous words of John McEnroe: “You cannot be serious.” The review was done by Richard Gould, the England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive, who has never played county or Test match cricket, and he decided nobody is to blame.” “What planet is he on? Is he oblivious to what the majority of former England players and cricket journalists are saying? Gould says it will not be a popular decision to keep Brendon McCullum, and he is damn …

Rob Key on why Brendon McCullum will continue on as England coach

Rob Key on why Brendon McCullum will continue on as England coach

Published by Webster

3 min readMar 23, 2026 10:29 PM IST England coach Brendon McCullum, Test captain Ben Stokes and Director of Cricket Rob Key have all retained their positions after a review of England’s poor Ashes series was conducted by the England and Wales Cricket Board. The Ashes tour, which the English media propped up as a good opportunity for the visitors to finally win on Australian shores ended up being a 4-1 thrashing – and a series that was marred by England’s poor preparation, off-field controversies and dismal performances on the field. Asked about the review and why McCullum continued to keep his position as coach, Rob Key said that after reflection, England believed they had the best personnel for the job. “Don’t underestimate how heartbreaking this winter has been for us. For all the fans that went out there (Ashes). We had so much optimism to win a historic series in Australia and it didn’t happen. All the thinking we had done, every waking moment, trying to go and beat a strong Australian side… it …

Brendon McCullum set to remain England head coach after ECB Ashes review

Brendon McCullum set to remain England head coach after ECB Ashes review

Published by Webster

3 min readMar 22, 2026 10:51 AM IST Brendon McCullum is set to remain as England’s head coach following the Ashes review conducted by the England Cricket Board. According to a Sky Sports report, the ECB will confirm the development on Monday, with McCullum set to keep his post and expected to lead the Test team into the home Ashes in 2027. The New Zealander faced stern scrutiny over his position after a disastrous Ashes campaign in which England lost 4–1 to Australia. McCullum’s case was further undermined by reports of off-field incidents. Following the horrendous Ashes, the ECB launched a review process of the team. McCullum has expressed his desire to continue in his role, saying he “loves” his job and would want to carry on. After leading England to the semifinal of the T20 World Cup 2026 in India, he told Sky Sports: “I love the job. It’s a great job. It doesn’t come without its challenges, of course, but that is the nature of it. I feel we have achieved some really …

Rob Key on why Brendon McCullum will continue on as England coach

Brendon McCullum opens up on Harry Brook incident during NZ Tour as well England players drinking behaviour amid Ashes in Australia | Cricket News

Published by Webster

5 min readUpdated: Mar 6, 2026 07:16 PM IST Prior to the T20 World Cup and Sri Lanka Tour, England side were facing a lot of criticism as well backlash over reports of England white-ball captain Harry Brook being punched by a nightclub bouncer while out drinking before an ODI in Wellington during the team’s tour to New Zealand and with the incident coming in knowledge with The Daily Telegraph reporting about the incident on the last day of the Ashes series between England and Australia. With Brook being fined 30,000 pounds by England Cricket Board and amid reports of the England players indulging in drinking sessions in the break between the second and third Ashes Test, the England side had its ups and down. England coach Brendon McCullum has shared how his players made the ‘mistake’ and how it was frustrating for the team. ‘Players know they made a shocking mistake and they were disciplined accordingly, it was dealt with and we moved on. I thought it was a really tough lesson for those …

T20 World Cup: ‘I think it has been a really good campaign…’: England coach Brendon McCullum on England’s semis run in the tournament | Cricket News

T20 World Cup: ‘I think it has been a really good campaign…’: England coach Brendon McCullum on England’s semis run in the tournament | Cricket News

Published by Webster

5 min readMar 6, 2026 07:02 PM IST With only one loss prior to the semi-finals in the T20 World Cup, England also counted among favourites coming into the T20 World Cup semi-final against India at Wankhede Stadium on Thursday. With the Harry Brook led England team coming agonisingly close to India’s total of 253 for 7 during the chase and falling short by seven runs, it meant that England bowed out of the tournament. England head coach Brendon McCullum has termed England’s campaign in the T20 World Cup as a ‘really good’ campaign and believes the team had the ability to find a way to win apart from how proud he was of the team for taking the semi-finals against India as close it got. “I think it has been a really good (T20 World Cup) campaign. We have been in some delicate situations and there has been an enormous amount of pressure throughout, particularly in the early games where you’re expected to win – and win well. There was an ability to find …

Brendon McCullum Signals Desire to Stay on as England Coach

Brendon McCullum Signals Desire to Stay on as England Coach

Published by Webster

Brendon McCullum has expressed his desire to remain as England’s head coach despite an exit in the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2026. England fell 7 runs short during the 254-run chase against India as the home side is set to face New Zealand in the sunday’s final. Three Lions had a decent performance at the World Cup, followed by a 4-1 defeat on the Ashes tour. Asa result, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was prompted to launch a thorough review into the team’s preparation in January. Brendon McCullum, who took charge of England’s setup in 2022, has been given white-ball responsibilities in January 2025 under a contract running through 2027. “I love the job. It’s a great job. It doesn’t come without its challenges, of course, but that is the nature of it,” said Brendon McCullum. “I feel we have achieved some really cool things over the last few years, but there is still so much to achieve with the side, across all formats. England Cricket Team (image: X) “A bit of …

Why Michael Vaughan is ‘staggered’ that England head coach Brendon McCullum arrives in country just 5 days before 1st NZ Test on June 4 | Cricket News

‘In fact, I thought a lot of the pile-on was…’: England coach Brendon McCullum on accusations of ‘drinking culture’ in team | Cricket News

Published by Webster

6 min readFeb 5, 2026 07:59 PM IST The recent months have seen the England team players embroiled in controversies during the New Zealand tour as well the Ashes. Post their 3-1 loss against Australia, reports came that England white-ball captain and Test vice-captain Harry Brook was involved in a brawl with a club bouncer during New Zealand Tour while the England players’ behaviour was criticised during the team’s trip to Noosa between the Brisbane and Adelaide Test of the Ashes with some of the England players including opener Ben Duckett seen drinking multiple times as per media reports. With England Cricket Board launching a review of the tour apart from implementing a curfew on the England players during the Sri Lanka Tour as well the T20 World Cup, a lot of spotlight will be on coach Brendon McCullum and his team. After England’s 3-0 win over Sri Lanka in the three-match T20I series earlier this week, McCullum spoke about how he believes his players did not go ‘overboard’ and how a lot of it …