News about Brendon McCullum

LAWRENCE BOOTH IN ISLAMABAD: Jack Leach (inset) has revealed how a phone call from Ben Stokes helped reignite his love of cricket after knee surgery and the loss of his Test place to Shoaib Bashir left him wondering: 'Why am I here?'. s England prepare for Thursday's decider against Pakistan in Rawalpindi, Leach - in his first series since badly injuring his left knee in India in January - is the leading wicket-taker on either side, with 14 at 26. Bashir, meanwhile, has managed six at 51.

Essex keeper-batsman Jordan Cox is in line for a Test debut in New Zealand in December after it emerged that Jamie Smith was likely to miss the last two games of England's three-match series there because of paternity leave. Smith, who has endured a tricky time so far in Pakistan but still averages nearly 42 from his first eight Tests, told Mail Sport earlier this month that he would sacrifice his England place in order to attend the birth of his first child. And head coach Brendon McCullum confirmed that England were planning for him to play in the first Test at Christchurch, starting on November 28, but to miss the games in Wellington and Hamilton.

LAWRENCE BOOTH IN MULTAN: As England completed an unprecedented victory over Pakistan on the final morning of the first Test in Multan, another entry was added to the Bazball hall of fame. Never before in 147 years of the game's oldest and greatest format had an innings victory been achieved by a team conceding a first-innings total of 500 or more. Yet as Jack Leach wrapped things up with the final three wickets, perhaps England's greatest achievement was to make the remarkable feel routine, history seem humdrum. Of course, this magnificent win was neither of those things.

TOP SPIN: When Test star Mohammad Rizwan approached Alex Hartley to ask about the spin-bowling plans for the new batsman during this year's Pakistan Super League, she knew she had been accepted into a world that would once have seemed more like another planet. But she could be forgiven for having her doubts.

LAWRENCE BOOTH IN MULTAN: In the City of Saints, England spent the first day of their Test series against Pakistan muttering a quiet prayer. It went largely unanswered. By stumps, on a surface flatter than the roads connecting the centre of Multan with its cricket stadium, the hosts had eased to 328 for four, with centuries for opener Abdullah Shafique and, gloriously, captain Shan Masood - his first in Tests for four years.

LAWRENCE BOOTH IN MULTAN: Brendon McCullum has warned England to expect 'rocking hot' conditions as they embark on their three-match series in Pakistan with a seam attack unaccustomed to the Asian heat. Temperatures of 35 degrees were expected for the first day in Multan - almost 10 higher than the seasonal average.  And with that figure likely to rise for next week's second Test here, England will have to manage their fast-bowling resources carefully.

Ben Stokes's return to Test cricket may be delayed after it emerged he could miss Monday's series opener against Pakistan in Multan. Stokes sat out the recent series at home to Sri Lanka after injuring his hamstring during the Hundred in August, but had been hopeful of resuming the captaincy for the first of six Tests in Pakistan and New Zealand between now and Christmas. England will know more on Saturday about his availability for Monday, with Ollie Pope on standby to continue as captain after leading his team to a 2-1 win over the Sri Lankans.

TOP SPIN: Remember the date: Monday, September 30 could be the day cricket changed for ever. All it took was 34.4 overs on the fourth afternoon of the second Test at Kanpur, in which time India scored 285 for nine against Bangladesh, unleashing the full shock and awe of their batting arsenal. At 8.22 runs an over, it was Test cricket's quickest innings (minimum: 50 balls), and comes as England fly to Pakistan - the scene, two years ago, of their own epoch-defining 506 for four on the first day of the series at Rawalpindi. The runs that day came at a rate of 6.75, which England upped to 7.36 in their second innings as the Bazball revolution achieved its first overseas scalp. Afterwards, we could hardly move at the back of the media centre for all the England batsmen signing their name on the honours board.

Dan Worrall is ready to turn his back on Australia and proudly don the Three Lions if England come calling next year. The Melbourne-born quick celebrated winning his third Division One title in three years with Surrey last week and has known nothing but success since arriving at the Oval in 2022. The UK passport holder has made three ODI appearances for Australia but will complete his qualification process to make the switch to England in April 2025. And with the Aussies lying in wait in the Ashes next winter, he says he would jump at the chance to play international cricket again.

Harry Brook has promised his England team will go out and have fun today against Australia - although the levels of enjoyment the last time these Ashes rivals met in Nottingham are unlikely to be reached. England blasted through the stratosphere at Trent Bridge in 2018, setting a new world record one-day international score of 481 for six a year out from becoming world champions. How times have changed. Australia are now holders of that particular belt and Brook, England's fifth captain of the summer, inherits something of a holding pattern ahead of Brendon McCullum assuming overall control in the new year.

RICHARD GIBSON: Jamie Smith will keep wicket against Ashes rivals Australia this month in a sign that England view him as a long-term bet across all three international formats. And the fact that Surrey's Smith, 24, was notified of his role before Jos Buttler was ruled out of the five matches against the old enemy, suggests that incoming coach Brendon McCullum favours a captain leading from the field. McCullum does not assume supreme control of England's teams until the new year, but has influenced key decisions over the past fortnight and Phil Salt would have been wicketkeeper for last week's drawn Twenty20 series against the Australians regardless of Buttler's availability.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE UTILITA BOWL: England's white-ball reset got off to an underwhelming start last night against Australia in the Southampton gloom on Wednesday evening. Not many were expecting instant fireworks in England's first limited-overs game since the announcement that Brendon McCullum would unite the red- and white-ball coaching roles early next year.

AADAM PATEL IN SOUTHAMPTON: Seventy-six days on from their humbling defeat to India in Guyana, a new era for England's white-ball side begins against Australia. Jordan Cox, Jacob Bethell and Jamie Overton will make their T20 debuts against Australia in a side captained by Phil Salt, with Jos Buttler ruled out of the three-match series due to a calf injury.

RICHARD GIBSON: Chris Woakes has been given a chance to resurrect his reputation as a Test cricketer overseas after being named in England's 17-man squad to tour Pakistan. England coach Brendon McCullum said recently that Woakes, 35, would need to prove himself in one or both of the upcoming series in Pakistan and New Zealand to be considered for next year's Ashes. The disparity between the Warwickshire veteran's record on home and foreign soil is stark: he has 137 Test wickets at 21.59 runs apiece here and 36 at 51.88 elsewhere.

DAVID LLOYD: We have heard plenty about Bazball over the past couple of years, but Sri Lanka tore into England with some Jayaball on the final day at the Oval to pick up their only Test win. Sanath Jayasuriya, Sri Lanka's acting head coach, is cut from the same cloth as Brendon McCullum. As a player, whenever there was a chance to attack, he'd take it. His team play the same way.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: As Pathum Nissanka cut Shoaib Bashir for four to put the seal on a brilliant century and a stirring Sri Lankan win, it was hard to avoid the thought that England's Test summer might be remembered, above all, for the one that got away. And it would not be entirely unfair. England have, it's true, won five Tests out of six, and seen the emergence of world-class talents in Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson. At just 20, Shoaib Bashir has nailed down the spinner's gig. There are reasons to celebrate.

LAWRENCE BOOTH: England's 2024 Test summer ended in disappointing fashion with an embarrassing eight-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka at The Oval on Monday. The loss meant England failed to complete a 100 per cent summer for the first time since 2004. However, it has still been a hugely positive few months for Brendon McCullum's side, with five victories and two series wins along the way. Several players such as Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir and Jamie Smith have also emerged and shone, while stalwarts of the side like Joe Root and Chris Woakes showed they have plenty still to give.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE KIA OVAL : While children around the country have been returning to school, England have played this Test as if the holidays were round the corner. Victory is not yet out of reach, with Sri Lanka - nine wickets intact - needing another 125 on Monday to avoid a 3-0 whitewash. But faced with the chance to complete a first perfect summer in 20 years, Ollie Pope's team have been complacent and careless in equal measure. Only Jamie Smith, who has enjoyed a superb first season at Test level, escaped censure as England - armed with a lead of 62 - were dismissed in their second innings for 156, their lowest total at home for two years.

Dan Lawrence has been batting in the unfamiliar position of opener this series, and people may ask whether he has done his long-term prospects harm in the process. Well, it's true that you can look so bad that people no longer think you look like a Test match cricketer. However, those who have picked him this summer have seen him enough over the years to know he is an eye-catching player and scores runs.

Andrew Flintoff has been appointed England Lions coach on an initial 12-month agreement. Flintoff, 46, will begin work in October, overseeing tours to South Africa and Australia either side of Christmas and home matches against India A and Zimbabwe next summer. The former England captain's rise through the coaching ranks over the past year has been catalysed by the ECB's men's director Rob Key, a close friend, who believes he has similar motivational qualities required to work at the highest level as those of Brendon McCullum.

NASSER HUSSAIN: Conditions on the opening day of this match were perfect for batters leaving the ball outside off-stump - typically, though, Ben Duckett did not leave a single one. Mark Butcher, a top order left-hander who batted a lot at the Oval, did the pitch report for Sky Sports on Friday and - tongue in cheek - said: 'If you leave the ball well, you can survive on here.' By the time he had added 86 runs to his tally, Duckett had swelled his tally of balls played at this series to 197 of 198.

Joe Root is priced at 4/1 odds with Sky Bet to score a century in the first innings of the third and final Test between England and Sri Lanka starting at the Oval today. It is worth noting that Root scored a century in the first innings of the second Test en route to a 190-run victory for England at Lord's. Meanwhile, in the head-to-head market, Brendon McCullum's side are odds-on favourites at 2/7 to win and complete a 3-0 whitewash. Conversely, Sri Lanka are 13/2 outsiders and a draw is priced at 11/2.

Brendon McCullum has urged Ben Stokes to help him keep the Bazball flame alight and go 'all in' for the next three years after extending his coaching contract to the end of 2027. Having added white-ball duties to his Test role, McCullum insisted he could cope with the extra workload, which will take in a home Ashes series and a 50-over World Cup in the final months of his reign. 'Some bets are worth it, right?' he said. 'The last two years would have been impossible. Now, with the schedule easing, it can have one person in the role. I'm happy to be governed by results - and be in the gun if things don't work out.'

RICHARD GIBSON: Brendon McCullum has vowed to inject some joy into England's limited-overs cricket after conceding captain Jos Buttler has been 'a little miserable,' over recent times. McCullum, speaking for the first time about combining his Test coaching role with white-ball duties from the start of 2025, said that Buttler was excited about their new partnership and that Ben Stokes had given it his blessing. Buttler, 34 this Sunday, retained his leadership position in a post Twenty20 World Cup review that saw Matthew Mott sacked as coach. During their final 10 months together, England relinquished both world titles, losing eight of 12 50-over fixtures and eight of 13 against major nations in T20.