Think beyond Brendon McCullum: Drowning England left with only fight for air to breath

Head Coach Brendon McCullum (L) and Director of Cricket Rob Key (R)

England have been one of the most ‘struggling’ sides in the World Test Championship cycles since the tournament’s inception in 2019. In the three WTC finals so far, England haven’t qualified for a single one. 

In the quest for the same, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) decided to appoint former New Zealand great Brendon McCullum as England’s head coach in the Tests. But this move has turned out to be one of the ‘failed’ decisions by the management after a bit of early success at the beginning of his stint. 

McCullum’s most-debated ‘BazBall’ approach has also been under the scanner after England’s horrific numbers away from home, across all the formats, be it Tests, ODIs, or the T20Is. 

That said, here I’ll walk you through the reasons which testify to a suggestion to the English management that ‘the time has come to think beyond Bredon McCullum’ as coach across all formats of the game.

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Home bullies with horrific away miseries in Tests

England have played 25 Tests at home since McCullum was appointed as head coach in the longest format of the game. After McCullum’s appointment on May 12, 2022 (almost three and a half years ago), the Three Lions have been very dominant at home in the Tests.

England in Home Tests under Brendon McCullum 

In the 25 games they have played on their home soil, the Three Lions have won 17, lost 6, and drawn 2. The opponents in these wins also matter a lot to add the tag of ‘home bullies’ to England’s name. Out of 17 home Test wins under McCullum, England have won seven games against struggling teams like Sri Lanka (2), West Indies (3), Ireland (1), and Zimbabwe (1).

On the other hand, they have won just seven out of 14 games played against the big teams like Australia (2), India (3), and South Africa (2), with five defeats and two draws.

England in away Tests under Brendon McCullum 

But England’s outings away from home expose McCullum’s short-sighted and over-confident ‘BazBall’ approach in the Tests. While playing away, England have performed miserably, with just eight wins and 11 defeats, including a draw in the Tests. 

England: series-by-series breakdown in away Tests under McCullum 

Speaking of England’s performance series-by-series, they won and lost a series each in two three-match Test assignments in Pakistan. Besides that, they won and drew a series each in New Zealand, alongside losing a Test series against the lower-ranked side in the West Indies.

Against the big teams like India and Australia, the Englishmen lost a Test series 1-4 in India and are on the verge of losing the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 after being 0-2 down. 

So, this significant difference between England’s numbers both away and at home loudly dictates a narrative that McCullum’s ‘ultra-aggressive’ approach has failed most of the time horribly when the side has played on foreign soil. 

The ‘all-time horrific’ dip in ODIs and average results in T20Is

In January 2025, the English management didn’t seem to learn from the past results under McCullum’s coaching, and they expanded his role from Test coach to an all-format coach. The numbers have been unexpectedly miserable for England in the ODIs since Baz took over the coaching duties earlier this year. 

England in away ODIs under McCullum 

Currently, England are ranked eighth, even below Afghanistan in the ICC ODI team rankings. They are just above the ODI minnows like West Indies and Bangladesh. In the away ODIs, they have lost nine of all the nine games they have played since January 2025. 

McCullum’s stint as all-format coach began with the away series against India, which they lost 0-3, followed by a disastrous performance in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. They lost all the three games in the tournament against Australia, Afghanistan, and South Africa. 

It was the second consecutive failure for England in an ICC event after group exit from the ODI World Cup 2023 in India. But they hoped for better results under McCullum, which ended in sheer disappointment. Furthermore, they also lost all the three matches of the three-match ODI series against New Zealand in New Zealand. 

England in home ODIs under McCullum 

On the other hand, their numbers at home have also not been very impressive, with a win and a loss each in two ODI series against West Indies (3-0) and South Africa (1-2). 

England in T20Is under McCullum 

Home 

Away

Looking at England’s T20I numbers under Baz’s coaching, they have won four out of five games at home, including a defeat. Three out of these four wins came against the ‘struggling’ West Indies. In their away T20I assignments, they have achieved 50 per cent results, with winning and losing four games each, alongside two no-result games in 10 T20Is. 

Conclusion: Time to think beyond illusion and execute a major shift

After enduring the years of miseries away from home across all formats, especially under the ‘over hyped’ coaching of Brendon McCullum, it’s high time for English cricket’s decision-makers to think beyond the illusion of the ‘BazBall’ approach. 

They must sit back and think about appointing an individual as head coach of England’s national side who can take the team back to the basics and make them re-establish themselves in the competition they used to be a couple of years back. 

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