16 h. ago Brendon McCullum confident England can throw off batting blues for Ashes

Smith, Duckett and Root all fail again in New Zealand loss‘In Tests we have a pretty decent idea of where we’re at’Brendon McCullum has predicted England’s batters will have no trouble shaking off the woes that have dogged their white-ball tour of New Zealand in time for the AshesTheir top order crumbled yet again on the way to a third successive defeat in Wellington on Saturday and several key members of the Test squad, including Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett and Joe Root, have struggled badly in recent one-day internationals. But the team’s head coach believes their troubles are limited to the 50-over format.“It’s a different form of the game and it’s a completely different kind of challenge that we’re going to be confronted with,” he said. “Sometimes the process you go through in regards to batting doesn’t necessarily translate to runs, but the game can come in time. That’s what we’re holding on to, anyway. Continue reading...

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16 h. ago Brendon McCullum dismisses Ashes fear for England batters after series whitewash

The tourists were humbled 3-0 by New Zealand in the one-day international series

Events

16 h. ago England batters not scarred by series loss ahead of Ashes, says Brendon McCullum

The tourists were humbled 3-0 by New Zealand in the one-day international series.

Politics

56 h. ago Borthwick hopes England can emulate Bazball mentality for autumn series

Head coach and Wigglesworth meet Brendon McCullumEngland face Australia on Saturday awaiting ‘Borthball’ eraEngland’s rugby players are seeking to emulate the Bazball ethos of their cricketing counterparts and strike a pre-emptive blow for the nation in the runup to the forthcoming Ashes series. Steve Borthwick and members of his coaching staff have had discussions with Brendon McCullum and want their team to make a fast and furious start against Australia in the Quilter Nations Series on Saturday.There is a collective desire within the England camp to make a statement over the next month and Borthwick and his defence coach, Richard Wigglesworth, have been picking McCullum’s brain on the best ways to encourage a positive mindset. “We met Brendon McCullum and his coaching staff a few weeks ago,” said Wigglesworth. “We had a sit down and a coffee in Manchester which was very enjoyable. Continue reading...

Politics

57 h. ago England plotting downfall of Australia after meeting architects of ‘Bazball’

Steve Borthwick and his number two Richard Wigglesworth met with England cricket coach Brendon McCullum and his assistants in Manchester.

Events

2 w. ago Harry Brook backs revitalised Sam Curran to make England T20 place his own

Curran hit 49 not out off 35 balls before England’s first match against New Zealand was abandoned due to rain.

Politics

2 w. ago Brendon McCullum brings David Saker back into England camp for Ashes series

Australian named special skills consultant for seriesCoach has been part of setup in three previous AshesBrendon McCullum has finalised his coaching team for the Ashes, with the Australian David Saker returning to help England in a fourth Test series against his homeland, having been involved during the 2010-11 and 2013 series, both of which England won, and again in the drawn series of 2023.Saker, whose official title is special skills consultant, will be in Australia from the arrival of the England Lions squad at the start of November and will remain with the senior team through all five Tests. Tim Southee, who has had the same title since May and is with the white-ball squad in his native New Zealand, will continue to work with the team until the end of the first Test in Perth, after which he will depart to fulfil playing obligations at the International League T20 in the United Arab Emirates. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago England and New Zealand find ‘special’ camaraderie amid hard graft

As a gruelling 2025-26 schedule begins with a T20 series, both tourists and hosts stress the importance of enjoymentEngland’s white-ball team have played 24 times this year, most recently a little more than three weeks ago. New Zealand’s have played 28 games, the latest was this month. These are groups who spend a lot of time together, but before the start of their Twenty20 series on Saturday both chiselled some space out of their schedule to do something surprisingly unusual with each other: nothing very much.Brendon McCullum took his team to Queenstown in New Zealand’s Southern Alps where, in Harry Brook’s words, they were “just left to our own devices”. There was some hiking, a bit of go-karting and, inevitably, a lot of golf. Continue reading...

Politics