Ben Foakes gives an insight into Brendon McCullum's motivational talk during the second Test

The cricketing fraternity is witnessing a more aggressive and confident England Test team under the leadership of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum. The new coach and captain duo have had a breathtaking start as England won the first Test against New Zealand by five wickets. The hosts followed it up with another victory in the second game to clinch the three-match series 2-0.

England was absolutely captivating during the second Test match. The hosts bounced back on the final day after a poor start to the game. Playing at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, the Englishmen had to chase a big score of 299 runs with almost 70 overs in hand. 

The home team were expected to play for a draw having had a 1-0 lead in the series. However, the team decided to adopt an aggressive approach and won the match within 50 overs of the final innings. Jonny Bairstow made a mockery of the New Zealand bowlers by slamming 136 runs off just 92 balls. He was well supported by captain Ben Stokes who played an admirable knock of 75 from 70 balls. 

Days after the conclusion of the iconic Test match, England's wicket keeper-batter Ben Foakes gave an insight into the 'Braveheart-style' speech by head coach McCullum that prompted the players to adopt a new mindset. 

Foakes revealed that McCullum was very clear about what he wanted from the players in the final innings. The head coach wasn't too concerned about the result of the game, but he wanted to get the things done in the right manner. 

"Baz's team talk at tea - it was like William Wallace! After he was done, everyone was desperate to get out there. The traditional Test approach in that situation would be 'see how it goes, see how many wickets we've got left, then if the situation isn't there, do we shut up shop?' He was like, 'Nah, we're not doing that. We're winning this game. If we don't, so be it - we've done it the right way. 

It doesn't matter if we don't win this game.' And it took the pressure off. I had a few questions and didn't want to be too indecisive and not know how I was meant to be playing. [McCullum] has been really clear with the doubts I had, and it was good for me to be open with him," Ben Foakes said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo. 

The wicketkeeper-batter also discussed the change in the dressing room's outlook post the appointment of the new head coach and captain. As per Foakes, both Stokes and McCullum have a positive outlook on the game and are against the idea of putting too much pressure on the players. 

Before the Test series against New Zealand, England's Test team was going through a rough patch. The team had lost its last five Test series while winning just one of their last 17 Test matches. 

"It has changed the way I look at Test cricket. With playing for England, there are obviously a lot of pressures, a lot of criticisms, and things like that. If you think about that too much, it weighs on you. But over the last two weeks, it's clear to see the positives and how amazing playing for England can be. Baz and Stokesy, the way they are, promote that," Ben Foakes signed off.