"With the skipper in charge, I’m not sure what’s possible for this side" - Brendon McCullum on Ben Stokes' lofty expectations from England in Tests  

England Test coach Brendon McCullum feels that the sky is the limit for skipper Ben Stokes with his mentality and approach. The ace all-rounder has only tasted defeat once ever since taking over the red-ball team from Joe Root in 2022.

The presence of the former New Zealand captain has also helped Stokes in implementing his aggressive brand of cricket. He began his captaincy stint with a ruthless 3-0 whitewash over New Zealand as England continued their dominance during the home season.

They defeated India and South Africa at home as well, before notching another 3-0 whitewash against Pakistan in an away series.

Branding Stokes as a player who writes his own 'scripts', McCullum said ahead of England's upcoming Test series against New Zealand:

“With the skipper in charge, I’m not sure what’s possible for this side because he’s a guy who writes his own scripts and achieves some pretty special things. I know the plans he has for this team are quite lofty and he’ll try to do what he can to drag the boys along for the ride."

McCullum admitted that he is not driven by the results, but is instead focused on implementing a style of cricket that brings the best out in players and said:

“It’s been a good start. Results have been great, but it’s not so much about results. I know we get judged on them, but that’s not really my focus, and that goes for the skipper as well."

McCullum continued:

“We just want the guys to play a style of cricket that gives them the greatest opportunity to allow their talent to come out and have a good time doing it."

Despite positive results of late, England are not in contention for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The side faced a poor start to the current cycle after losing five Tests across their first two series, which included a 4-0 drubbing in the 2021-22 Ashes, led by Root

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"Even if your team doesn’t win, you can still walk away thinking you’ve had a hell of a day out" - Brendon McCullum

England's brute approach driven by Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes came across as largely unprecedented. The opposition teams have been caught off-guard by it and the transition has worked wonders for the Englishmen so far.

Reiterating that optimum results are not the highest paramount in their vision, McCullum said:

“They are going to be entertained, regardless of whether New Zealand win or we win. People are patriotic and want their own team to win, but this is one of the reasons we’re in the job we’re in – we want to make Test cricket entertaining and ensure that people walk away with a great experience from the game."

McCullum concluded:

“Even if your team doesn’t win, you can still walk away thinking you’ve had a hell of a day out. Hopefully that will be the case throughout this series.”

England are scheduled to face New Zealand in a two-match Test series from February 16 onwards. The Bay Oval and Basin Reserve will play host to the matches.

Will England make it to the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) Final? Let us know what you think.

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