Brendon McCullum has rejected claims that England’s Ashes tour was marked by poor off field discipline and dismissed suggestions of a drinking culture under his leadership, describing the criticism as a “pile-on”.
Speaking after England’s T20I series win in Sri Lanka, McCullum said his players did not go “overboard at all” during the Ashes and pushed back strongly against the narrative that developed across the series.
“You have to be allowed to enjoy yourself as well,” McCullum said. “I don’t think the boys went overboard at all. In fact, I thought a lot of the pile-on for it was completely out of line.
“I mean, even in Noosa. Noosa is where people go to retire. There was a reason why we chose Noosa. It was being made out as this big stag-do place. It couldn’t be further from that. If we wanted a stag do, we’d have gone to the Gold Coast.”
Several England players were photographed drinking outside a bar in Noosa during the mid series break, while a video circulated on social media showing Ben Duckett appearing intoxicated. Further scrutiny followed the Ashes after it emerged that Harry Brook had been sanctioned for an altercation with a nightclub bouncer on the eve of the final one day international of England’s pre Ashes tour of New Zealand.
“We care about these guys and we understand that they are still young,” McCullum said. “And our job is to try and nurture them through it. It doesn’t mean we’re going to get everything right either. There’s going to be times where we make mistakes. I’ll make mistakes, they’ll make mistakes, the environment will make mistakes. But we are trying to look after them. In the end, they’re good at cricket, these lads. That’s what their gift is. They’re good at cricket. They’re not the finished articles as people yet.
“They’ve got elements of maturity to still develop. That’s what we’re here to try and help them with.”
McCullum also defended Brook and the England and Wales Cricket Board over their handling of the New Zealand incident, which was reported publicly two months after it occurred. It later emerged that Josh Tongue and Jacob Bethell had also been disciplined. Brook issued a further public apology after England’s opening T20I win in Sri Lanka, admitting he had lied to the media to “protect his teammates”.
“I don’t think we need to release all of those findings every time something arises to the media,” McCullum said. “Others will have their own opinions…The process was done internally at the ECB, which we were all a part of. The boys were under no uncertain terms of how we felt about it, but now our job is to support them.
“And, to be honest, I find it quite annoying that we keep going on and on about it, because these are young men who are under immense pressure and they’ve put their hand up for something they’ve been disciplined for, and piling onto them is not helpful for anyone.”
Addressing criticism aimed directly at Brook, McCullum added: “Brooky obviously was trying to protect his other players when he made that comment, I wasn’t aware of that comment until I was told, because I don’t read the media personally.
“I think he was quite keen to put his hand up when the information came that it was going to land in the media. He was hopeful that it had been dealt with internally, as we all were. He is a strong leader, he’s a young man, but he’s got a very good head on his shoulders and I know people will say he’s not that clever. I couldn’t disagree with that more. He wears his intelligence lightly and he’s a very strong leader, and he’s someone that they play for in their dressing-room as well, and our job is to just keep looking after him because he is still young.”
McCullum’s position as Test head coach came under review after the Ashes, with criticism directed at what was perceived to be a relaxed environment. He reiterated his desire to continue in the role.
“Yes, I’d like to [continue as Test head coach], because I’d like to finish what we started.”
England introduced a curfew and expanded their support staff while touring Sri Lanka, changes that appeared to contrast with McCullum’s public image.
“I think you guys need to work me out a little bit better, to be honest,” McCullum said. “If you go back to the day that I walked into the job, the first thing I said to these boys is ‘don’t do anything that lands you on the front page of the paper’ and ‘nothing ever good happens after midnight’. The curfew is a different interpretation of those words that I mentioned three-and-a-half years ago.
“I think the misconception out there is that I run this loose ship, where I want everyone out on [the] piss all the time, having a great time, and don’t give a hoot about cricket. It couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m fiercely determined. I’m fiercely competitive.”
England begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Nepal on February 8.
