Kamal Ghorui
MUMBAI: Calling Brendon McCullum “the best coach I’ve ever had”, England’s white-ball captain Harry Brook urged the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to retain the New Zealander as the team’s all-format head coach after England’s sevenrun semifinal loss to India. McCullum’s future has come under scrutiny following England’s poor Ashes tour of Australia, where they lost 1-4.After England’s narrow defeat to India, McCullum said he would “love to carry on,” with Brook insisting the former New Zealand captain remained “125%” the right man for the job. Brook said his partnership with McCullum had flourished since he took over as white-ball captain in April last year. “Our partnership has been really good since I took over. We get on very well and the communication has been outstanding. Long may it continue,” Brook said.
“I’ve said plenty of times he’s the best coach I’ve ever had. He has an aura in the dressing room and everyone looks up to him. What he achieved as a player was unbelievable and he’s carried that into his coaching. Over the last four years he’s changed English cricket for the better.”Brook also credited the culture of resilience in the side — something he believes McCullum helped foster — as England repeatedly fought their way back into matches during the tournament. “The boys have fought their arses off and we’ve been in the game until the very last ball almost every match,” Brook said.Despite winning six of their eight games, England never quite produced a complete performance during the World Cup. In the semifinal, England mounted a strong fightback, finishing at 246/7 in reply to India’s imposing 253/7 on what Brook described as a “bowlers’ graveyard”.Fighting the disappointment of the exit, Brook said he was proud of the team’s spirit. “Disappointed but extremely proud. As a captain I couldn’t ask for much more. We’ve had an amazing campaign.”Brook also admitted he had let India off the hook by dropping Sanju Samson at mid-on when the wicketkeeper-batter was on 15. “Catchers win matches, don’t they?” Brook said. “Unfortunately it didn’t stay in my hands. He played a very good innings and arguably won them the game. It’s not ideal, but it’s happened now.”
