England ‘have been building to this moment’ – McCullum

For an Ashes series, according to coach Brendon McCullum, his England team is “defined” by their coach.

Since McCullum took over as England Test team in 2022, McCullum and captain Ben Stokes have given the organization new life.

The first Test against Australia in Perth will begin on Friday (02:20 GMT), according to the New Zealander, who said they have been “building to this moment.”

McCullum stated to BBC Sport in his only interview since arriving in Australia that “there is nothing greater than what we’re about to enter.”

This team has been working together for a good couple of years, McCullum said in a statement to Test Match Special commentator and former England spinner Phil Tufnell.

It has the biggest stage and the brightest lights, they say. It is a series that can define its members, its members, and its players. That is acceptable.

You are confident in your ability to compete at this level because you are confident in your ability to. Stay together, play the way you’ve grown used to it, and we’ll see where we’ll land in a few months.

On Thursday, England will announce their starting XI, with spinner Shoaib Bashir likely to miss out on the 12-man squad announced on Wednesday.

The tourists will face a five-man pace attack, which is probably their most rapid team ever to produce for a Test match.

Former New Zealand captain McCullum expressed excitement and perhaps a little more restraint than I did a few weeks ago.

“We’ve got our team ready to go.” Our horse will run well, in my opinion. Who knows whether we can find a better horse than us in the race.

When McCullum and Stokes signed for England in the summer of 2022, they had only won one of their previous 17 Test matches, including a 4-0 defeat in their final Ashes tour.

They established a new style of play for England, created a new team with a number of young players, and won impressive series victories at home against New Zealand and South Africa, then again against the Kiwis and Pakistan.

However, England haven’t won a significant five-test series against either Australia or India, despite drawing 2-2 in their final Ashes match in 2023.

It will determine the progress we’ve made, according to McCullum. It would be very important for Stokesy to be able to help an England team win away from home.

We are aware of all of that, but embracing what comes naturally is key to living in the moment. This tour will present challenges for us. There will be good and bad days.

“We’ll give ourselves the best chance as long as we keep pursuing the goal.”

The West Australian newspaper reported on the hostile atmosphere England had in Perth. The visitors were described as “arrogant Bazballing Poms” on Thursday’s front page.

McCullum compared the low-key style of his time playing for New Zealand to the hype surrounding the Ashes, calling it “pretty cool.”

“It’s a blessing to be in this position,” I said. We are aware of the difficulty, but we aren’t attempting to treat cancer. We’re attempting to win a few cricket games. We’re attempting to live in the present, embody everything that has already happened, and complete the task at hand.

There will be pressure, they say, but let’s just be ourselves, lads. Do the best job you can, and we’ll see where we land.

Stokes urged his team to “create history” on Wednesday. The all-rounder’s first appearance since suffering a shoulder injury in July will be in Stokes’ opening Test, according to McCullum, who stated that he is “absolutely flying”.

He said, “Emotionally, he is in the best place I’ve ever seen him.” I’ve never seen him in a better setting from the perspective of leadership. He is prepared to depart. He is aware of how significant this is to him.

Stokes’ ability to recover from a number of injuries will determine his team’s chances of winning the urn. He has not won any of England’s previous four series.

Stokes will likely join Mark Wood, who has elbow and knee issues, as his replacement in the England attack.

” He’s flying, “said Stokes”. He has been bowling for a long, long time despite having all of his injuries and other issues.

He has always been a player who can “hit the ground running” when playing. He can bowl quickly.

Steve Smith will take over as skipper for Australia, who is missing pace bowler Josh Hazlewood and captain Pat Cummins.

The home side have given their XI names. Opening pitchers Jake Weatherald and Brendan Doggett get debuts, and Beau Webster gets a bad rap.

Smith addressed Monty Panesar in an odd manner to the media.

Prior to this, Panesar had previously suggested that England should punish Smith for his role in the Sandpapergate ball-tampering scandal against South Africa, which ultimately cost him his position as full-time Australia captain in 2018.

Smith referenced Panesar’s monologue on BBC TV’s Mastermind, for which he only received one correct response.

Smith said, “I’m going to go off topic here.” Who among you in the room witnessed Monty Panesar and Mastermind? Do you know anyone?

“Those of you who have understood will know where I’m coming from. Do yourself a favor by watching it if you haven’t because it’s pretty comical.