There is, or rather was, a captain vs coach clash in England dressing room. Even though England’s white-ball captain Harry Brook was all praise for Brendon McCullum, Test captain Ben Stokes did not have many nice things to say after a 1-4 thrashing in the Ashes. McCullum was on his way out of the Test setup. But at the review meeting at Lord’s this week, he received support from Stokes. Now, he will stay on till the World Cup 2027.

During the Ashes debacle in Australia, where England stars were battered on the field and off of it, captain Stokes and coach McCullum fell apart. They did not share a cordial relationship as both were critical of each other, as per The Telegraph report. In his Ashes review to the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Stokes did not back his coach.

“I think that we are now playing against teams who have answers to the style of cricket that we have been playing over quite a long period of time now,” Stokes said.

Brendon McCullum too did not back his captain. Instead, he pointed fingers at Stokes, saying that he did not stick to the attacking philosophy. Instead, the mixed messages confused other players in the squad, leading to the Ashes debacle.

ECB cuts down on Brendon McCullum’s power

However, England bounced back from the Ashes slump. With Harry Brook as the leader, McCullum proved his doubters wrong. England beat Sri Lanka in their own backyard in the ODI and T20I series. And then, the T20I side went on to play the semifinal of the T20 World Cup before falling short against India. Those performances earned McCullum some good graces once again.

On his part, McCullum also handled off-the-field incidents well as he warned Harry Brook & Co about after parties and focused more on preparations. He also agreed to a pink-ball practice match in Melbourne before the 150th anniversary pink-ball Test against Australia. England opted against a warm-up game before the Ashes pink-ball Test.

Brook was in the eye of the storm in Australia after his nightlife went viral amidst the Ashes slump. Following that incident, McCullum imposed restrictions on drinking.

The ECB also went on to cut down on McCullum’s power and imposed more oversight. Ed Barney, the performance director, will now have a more oversight role within the setup, cutting down on McCullum’s free rein. There will be changes to the support staff, and more emphasis will be put on strength and conditioning. Some of the players will be ousted as they have struggled to perform despite the support of Stokes-McCullum.

As for Ben Stokes, he will also need to prove his fitness. For a second consecutive Ashes series, he failed to keep up his fitness. He was unavailable to bowl in the fifth Ashes Test. Stokes also lost his form, scoring just 184 runs in 10 innings at an average of 18.4. The 35-year-old will now focus on the County Championship to regain form and build up bowling load.

England’s next Test assignment will be against New Zealand in June, followed by Pakistan in August-September. Ben Stokes & Co will tour South Africa in December.