Once the dust settles on the expected retention of Brendon McCullum as coach, England’s biggest test in the coming summer won’t be against either New Zealand or Pakistan but winning over fans who are still furious about last winter’s Ashes.
Backing McCullum, a decision that is understood to have already been finalised, is a huge risk for the England & Wales Cricket Board.
Both the New Zealander’s position and that of managing director Rob Key rightly came under scrutiny during and after the shambolic 4-1 series defeat in Australia.
Neither could have complained if they were jettisoned such was the nature of a tour that was beset by poor preparation, on-field execution and off-the-field behaviour.
Ollie Pope was dropped by England after a dire run of form with the bat (Photo: PA)There may well be a gap between the public perception of the Bazball regime and the actual reality. Yet there is more than a kernel of truth in the theory that McCullum and Key have cultivated a loose, unprofessional environment that has fostered a culture of boozing and off-the-field indiscipline.
The players know how it all looks, too, with Ollie Pope, dropped after the third Ashes Test in Adelaide last December, admitting as much at Surrey’s pre-season media day at The Oval on Tuesday.
“Going into that series there was a lot spoken about the preparation and I guess as a team I think the misconception might be that we weren’t as fussed as it came across if that makes sense?” he said.
“Of course we want to be a well-liked team on and off the pitch and unfortunately our performance didn’t allow that to happen in Australia. I can understand why people felt that way but at the same time the perception that we weren’t fussed is the hard thing.
“It’s not nice. But at the same time I can understand how it’s happened.”
‘It could be a lot worse’
Pope was speaking in a joint press conference alongside Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson after The i Paper last week forced the ECB to reverse their gagging order on England’s Ashes stars.
Yet the perception that the players don’t care wasn’t helped when Atkinson, in reply to a question about the mental toll the Ashes had taken on him, said: “It’s not that bad. I mean it could be a lot worse, couldn’t it? It’s just a bit of cricket so I was alright.”
Careless talk and a worry that the Test team had an image problem were flagged up at the start of last summer by both Key and McCullum. At the time, the coach admitted: “It’s not just about what you do on the cricket field. It’s how you carry yourself. It’s how you interact with the public. It’s the messaging that you give.
“The ability these guys have to be able to play on the biggest stage, is one thing, but also the ability to be humble and show some humility and not feel out of touch with the general population is something I’d like to see us improve on.”
England face a toxic summer
Things have gone rapidly downhill since then, with the Ashes pain exacerbated by the feeling among fans that the players were on one long stag do after the ill-advised mid-series holiday to Noosa, revelations about the players being out late following the first Test defeat in Perth and, most damagingly, the cover-up of Harry Brook’s altercation with a Wellington doorman the night before an ODI against New Zealand just a few weeks before the Ashes began.
Now with the exact same regime being retained for the summer ahead, the fact nobody will be held accountable for the farce in Australia risks further alienating supporters this summer.
McCullum looks set to remain in post as England coach (Photo: Getty)New Zealand and Pakistan, both of who will face England in three-Test series either side of the Hundred, are not the hardest opposition in the world, especially at home.
But nor are they pushovers. Both are capable of causing England problems and if results do start to go badly, there will be absolutely no hiding place for either McCullum or Key.
What they say ahead of the first Test against the Black Caps at Lord’s in early June will be important.
If both are apologetic, honest about the failures of the winter and show some humility then everybody may be able to move on and the slate can be wiped.
But if they try to minimise what happened, fail to own up to their own shortcomings and become belligerent with their many critics, the summer ahead could quickly turn toxic.
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