Ben Stokes has said he has no doubt he wants Brendon McCullum alongside him as the England head coach, but accepted the Ashes defeat means the pair must sit down before the summer and work out how they can upgrade the team.
Senior figures at the England and Wales Cricket Board are wary of making sweeping changes and with Stokes seemingly safe, McCullum’s fate as head coach probably rests on his endorsement.
With the fifth Ashes Test starting on Sunday, Stokes warned against ripping up the current regime and suggested the New Zealander will be getting his support – even if, at 3-1 down with one to play, the final scoreline and tenor is still to be established. He said: “There is no doubt in my mind me and Brendon are the right people to carry on doing this for the near future.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the time I’ve worked with Brendon. I can’t see there being someone else who I could take this team [with] from where we are now to even bigger heights.
“So for us as captain and coach, when we do have the time off, we need to put our heads together and go ‘What is it that we think we need to do to go to the next level?’”
Even if the pair’s continuation is signed off – a decision on McCullum’s future may also hinge on the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka that starts on 7 February – an internal review into the Ashes campaign will look into pre-series preparation and training on tour.
It will also delve into the make-up of the backroom staff, including whether enough technical expertise is being offered to players. As it stands, there is no fielding coach or wicketkeeping mentor, while David Saker, the bowling consultant, is on a short-term deal. Rob Key, similarly under scrutiny as the England men’s team director, has admitted McCullum’s preference for a pared-back coaching set-up may have hindered the team in Australia.
Key’s investigation into the mid-tour break in Noosa has not thrown up any examples of wrongdoing by players, but the team culture – including alcohol consumption – and the cost-to-value ratio of such McCullum-led extracurricular activities will also be examined.
Stokes said: “You look back at how things have gone over the last year, the results and the consistency hasn’t quite been there from the first two and a half to three years we were in charge.
“All we’ve ever wanted to do is constantly push the guys and not wanting to stand still. We’ve got some things to go away and speak about and try to get the boys pushing even further forward than we managed to achieve since me and Brendon first took over.”
Perhaps the biggest change in that time is McCullum taking on the white-ball teams as part of a contract extension to the end of 2027 World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Stokes said: “He has got two jobs. [But] it has not influenced the relationship we have with this Test team whatsoever.”
Nevertheless, the Test team’s results have tailed off since McCullum took on the extra roles at the start of 2025, with England winning 22 out of 35 matches beforehand and four out of 10 after – including a 2-2 draw at home to India and the disappointment of this tour.
The one-day side has won four and lost 11 in this time – including a group stage exit from the Champions Trophy last year – but the T20 side has eight wins and five defeats going into a World Cup that could have ramifications for the setup at the top.
