Brendon McCullum is the new England test coach. Photo / Getty
Brendon McCullum is the new England test coach. Photo / Getty
OPINION:
Hail the cricketing messiah.
England bosses have taken a four-year leap of faith that Brendon McCullum can change their test fortunes.
The ECB governing body is pursuing a mantra first laid down when the 40-year-old resurrected the Black Caps' cause as skipper from 2013 to 2016.
A pivotal momentcame during the 2015 World Cup when New Zealand trounced England by eight wickets. What was described as McCullum's "funky" captaincy came to English attention, like putting four slips in place when Trent Boult bowled to Moeen Ali. England were eventually ousted from pool play; New Zealand made their maiden final.
Change came through his friend and England limited overs captain Eoin Morgan, culminating in victory over New Zealand by the "barest of margins" in the 2019 World Cup final at Lord's.
Now McCullum has been hired, and his timing looks ripe for a miracle.
The journey starts with the test series against New Zealand at Lord's on June 2 when he will enter the home dressing room and brush up on God Save The Queen. England are bottom of the world championship; have won one of their last 17 tests; and are sixth in the rankings.
That is prime McCullum territory. He has been there before, notably in a now mythical Cape Town hotel room on January 2, 2013 after South Africa dismissed New Zealand for 45 in his first test as captain.
"The perception… was that we were over-paid, under-delivering, lazy prima donnas," McCullum told the Herald after being selected as the newspaper's 2014 New Zealander of the year.
"The country can cop us losing, but they can't cop us being those other things. The team had no soul. We were full of bluster and soft as putty.
"We wanted to be blue collar in how we went about things, not aloof and superior. We planned less and had fewer team meetings."
Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum. Photo / Getty
That team laid the foundations for today's legacy. The parallels are obvious as to what could come England's way.
McCullum will want his team to play with a free spirit, and earn the right to be instinctive and aggressive. Captain Ben Stokes should be the perfect conduit for actioning such ideas.
The only moral dilemma comes with taking the role against an opponent on whom he has a dossier of intellectual property. Still, New Zealand coaches and players are plying their trade across a global village these days. Trade secrets are hard to keep in a world of forensic video scrutiny.
McCullum's record as a "coach" - but probably more accurately a man-manager - has justifiably been questioned. He has won a Caribbean Premier League Twenty20 title with Trinbago, and took Kolkata to the Indian Premier League final last year, but has never mentored a first-class team. However, that argument seems hollow given he played 101 consecutive tests from debut, captained his country on 31 occasions and revolutionised how his charges approached the game.
McCullum's "boy from south Dunedin" chutzpah also carries people with him. He was asked to deliver the prestigious Cowdrey "spirit of cricket" lecture by the Marylebone Cricket Club in 2016, but his persona captivates all walks of life. This writer discovered that when discussing the New Zealand team while purchasing lamb from a Manchester-based halal butcher called Mo on the 2015 tour.
"I love watching Brendon McCullum," he said. "Here, have a 10 per cent discount."
