England head coach Brendon McCullum feels his gamers have lacked humility of their latest public utterances and he would love to see them win again respect from followers forward of the powerful house sequence towards India and the Ashes later this 12 months.
McCullum, whereas talking to the media forward of a lone Test towards Zimbabwe beginning Thursday (May 22, 2025) in Nottingham, stated “the players need to be more attuned to public mood”.
“It’s not just about what you do on the cricket field. It’s how you carry yourself. It’s how you interact with the public. It’s the messaging that you give,” McCullum advised the British media.
“The ability these guys have to be able to play on the biggest stage, under the brightest lights and the pressure that takes is one thing, but also the ability to be humble and show some humility and not feel out of touch with the general population is something I’d like to see us improve on.”
England’s gamers have drawn criticism for his or her seemingly nonchalant angle in direction of on-field setbacks, the latest being a winless Champions Trophy marketing campaign in Pakistan. They had been additionally lambasted by former batting star Kevin Pietersen for enjoying golf whereas skipping coaching throughout a poor limited-overs tour of India earlier than the Champions Trophy.
England are taking part in a one-off Test towards Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge earlier than subsequent month’s marquee sequence at house towards India and the away Ashes rubber in Australia.
McCullum’s remarks come after feedback made by some gamers dismissing criticism got here below scrutiny, forcing England’s director of cricket Rob Key to say that they need to “stop talking rubbish”.
Even final month, quick bowler Mark Wood admitted that they are often “a bit dumb”.
“We’ve just got to be a bit smarter with some of our comments. What we say in that dressing room is often very different to what you expect to come out in a public forum,” McCullum stated.
“We’ve got we just got to be aware of that, smart enough to be able to make sure that we articulate things when we get the opportunity so that we don’t we don’t lose touch with the English people”.
McCullum stated he and his group need the followers to be happy with the group.
“We want them along for the ride, particularly in the next few series, which could be quite amazing.
“We want people to look back and say, ‘Crikey, that team in the mid-2020s was a hell of a team that we loved following, and we felt as if we were a part of that journey they went on.”
Since taking charge of the team in 2022, McCullum changed England’s style of play, popularly called the ‘Bazball’ approach, which emphasises on taking positive decisions in attack and defence both with bat and ball.
The move paid dividends initially, as from one win in 17 Tests prior to McCullum’s era, England emerged victorious in 10 of their next 11 matches.
England are currently second in the world rankings, but of late, they have been guilty of producing some sloppy performances. To add to it, England lost all their matches in Champions Trophy in February this year.
“If we take a look at it initially, folks had been excited by the best way we performed,” said McCullum.
“They had been enthralled by the freewheeling sort of cricket they usually felt…With a little bit of idle time, we get the chance to retrospectively take a look at issues and see the place issues have been over the previous few years…what we have achieved, alternatives we have let slip…,” the previous New Zealand captain added.
Published – May 21, 2025 12:56 pm IST
