Brendon McCullum has told Sky Sports he has no plans to stand down as England manager following the shock international retirement of captain Ben Stokes.
Stokes’ decision was revealed at 3.25pm ​​on Sunday, moments before the all-rounder took a wicket on day four of the crucial Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge.
McCullum and Stokes took charge of England in the spring of 2022 and went on to win 11 of their first 13 Tests before results faded as the team’s Bazball approach stalled.
Monday’s loss to the Black Caps – which handed England a first home Test series defeat in a contest of three or more matches since 2012 – was a seventh in their last nine Tests.
McCullum, who led a 4-1 Ashes thrashing of Australia over the winter, is under contract until the end of 2027, a year that includes a home Ashes series in the summer and the 50-over World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia in the autumn.
“My enthusiasm for English cricket has never wavered. I have a firm belief in the direction this team can go,” McCullum said.
“[The Lord’s Test] was a good example of some improvements, to be able to handle the pressure when the pressure arose and to be able to tactically deploy some players so that we can be a more rounded team.
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Stokes reflects on his England career after his final Test match
“The second Test was difficult for a number of reasons and here we were played in tough competition by a fantastic New Zealand team.
“We still have an identity about us, but we want to continue to shape and utilize that to get us in a direction where we are the team we want to be. The talent sitting in this country is huge.
“My faith and commitment to English cricket has never wavered throughout.”
Stokes and McCullum took charge of England in 2022
McCullum’s future could be taken out of his hands with the reset England wanted after a botched Australia tour fell flat.
The team won the first Test of the summer against New Zealand by 115 runs on a terrible Lord’s pitch.
However, the win was overshadowed by Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson breaking a team curfew by attending a nightclub after midnight the following morning, and an ECB security guard requiring stitches having been hit by Saracens academy rugby player Totoa Auvaa from a punch aimed at Atkinson.
The curfew was put in place after drink-related problems plagued England’s winter, including Harry Brook being watched by a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand and video emerging of Ben Duckett apparently drunk during a break in Noosa between Ashes Tests.
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Ahead of the Trent Bridge Test, Stokes spoke to Sky Sports’ Michael Atherton about the chaotic fallout from the nightclub incident
Stokes and Atkinson were ruled out of the second Test against New Zealand at The Oval while the ECB and Cricket Regulator investigated the nightclub incident, with an inexperienced side featuring three debutants beaten by 253 runs in their absence.
The pair returned for the third Test in Nottingham after being cleared of violent conduct – each given a written warning for breaching “specific contractual obligations” – but England still slipped to defeat, despite facing a battered Kiwi bowling attack.
McCullum has been criticized for allowing Stokes to open the batting in his final Test innings – with four crucial wickets coming late on day four a key factor in their eventual 160-run defeat – but the England coach has insisted the decision was both tactically and emotionally wise.
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Nasser says Stokes will go down as one of England’s greatest captains
“I thought the people who have supported him deserved an opportunity to say goodbye and show appreciation for how much he means to them with one last trip out there,” McCullum said.
“I was a former cricketer – you don’t really feel it at the time, with the guard of honor and the salutes from the players… but looking back, it’s the right line in the sand moment you need to be able to move on to the next stage of your career.
“We knew he was going to open the batting because we wanted to make a dent in the total while the ground was still hard, we knew it was going to be a bit dry today and scoring was going to be difficult.
“We needed to get the message out so people had a chance to understand what happened and to celebrate it.
“It just happened that as soon as it did, Stokesy did what Stokesy does.”
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