Brendon McCullum willing to evolve his coaching methods after England's 4-1 defeat to Australia

England head coach Brendon McCullum feels that he will need to make "tweaks" in his coaching methods following the team's 4-1 defeat to Australia in The Ashes. Though his tenure as the side's Test coach had began on a high with 12 wins from 13 games, their form has now dipped severely. The Three Lions have lost six out of their first 10 games in the ongoing Woirld Test Championship (WTC) cycle and currently sit seventh on the standings.

Though McCullum is under contract for two more years, the criticism against him has increased significantly following England's dismal performance in The Ashes. The 44-year-old will most probably stay till the 2026 T20 World Cup, but another disappointing performance can mean trouble for him.

McCullum wants the team to improve

Following England's five-wicket defeat in Sydney, McCullum said that he is willing to evolve his coaching methods so that the team can improve. However, he also said that he knows how to get the best out of the players and isn't in favour of "being told what to do."

"I'm all for progress and evolution in all sports. From my point of view, I have firm beliefs in what works and some areas where you want to keep improving, and some areas where you think you can evolve," McCullum said on BBC's Test Match Special.

"I'm not against assistance but I also have a firm belief in how to get the best out of these players. From my point of view, I'll look at it individually and say, 'Right, what could I have done better?' and 'What could I improve on?' Am I for being told what to do? Of course I'm not," he added.

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McCullum further said that there are multiple areas where the team needs to improve drastically and highlighted the importance of making a plan and moving forward.

"But at the same time, I'm not pig-headed [enough] to think there's not some areas that we can improve on, and once we digest what's unfolded over the last two months and start to plot and plan a way forward, if you're the man in the chair to do so then you do so with a similar conviction in your methods - albeit with a couple of tweaks," McCullum stated.

England to tour Sri Lanka next

Meanwhile, England will now be shifting their focus to white-ball cricket as they are scheduled to tour Sri Lanka for a three-match ODI and T20I series each, starting from January 22. They will then begin their 2026 T20 World Cup on February 8 with the clash against Nepal at the Wankhede stadium.