Stokes says talk of McCullum rift ‘massive overstatement’

LONDON: England captain Ben Stokes has dismissed suggestions of a collapse in his relationship with coach Brendon McCullum, although he says the way they work together will “look a little bit different” this season.

Stokes and McCullum, a former New Zealand captain, have been in a close alliance since joining forces in 2022.

But there appeared to be a difference in their respective approaches as England slumped to a woeful 4-1 series Ashes loss in Australia.

As all-rounder Stokes opted for a more grinding, disciplined approach, as the series wore on, while McCullum continued to stand by his mantra of ultra-aggressive ‘Bazball’ cricket.

Both men backed each other in public at the end of the series and Stokes reiterated that position following media reports a post-Ashes review had revealed tensions between the duo.

“Saying we weren’t aligned, I think, is a massive overstatement,” Stokes said in an in-house interview with the England and Wales Cricket Board published Tuesday.

“When you’re in a position of leadership along with someone else, if anyone thinks that you’re always going to agree on everything, then it’s just impossible.”

England are back in Test action in June, against New Zealand, before taking on Pakistan at home as well. Stokes said there would be a change in how he worked with McCullum as the team look to return to winning ways ahead of the 2027 Ashes in England.

“I’m very confident in mine and Brendon’s ability to be able to work together, because we’ve done it for such a long period of time now, but work together in a slightly different way,” he said.

“The main point of me and Brendon is our alignment towards winning things and making this team as good as they can be. That’s always been the thing since we started. It might just look a little bit different now to how that operates – on the back of four years working together.

“Hopefully we’ll still be together at the end of 2027, winning what we want to win.”

Stokes is currently recovering from a facial injury after being struck by a stray ball in pre-season training but is expected to lead England in the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s on June 4.