Brendon McCullum has dismissed criticism of England’s actions as “insane” and slammed the perception that England are running a “loose ship”.
At the end of England’s 4-1 loss to the Ashes, which saw England exposed to accusations of a “drinking culture”, news broke that white-ball captain Brook had been involved in an altercation with a nightclub bouncer on his previous tour to New Zealand.
Mr Brooke apologized at the beginning of his visit to Sri Lanka and claimed he had been out alone, but was later forced to issue a statement admitting that this was not the case after reports that Mr Jacob Bethell and Josh Tan had also been fined.
In a wide-ranging interview after the T20 series win over Sri Lanka, head coach McCullum said: “I don’t think it was necessary to announce the details until it was revealed in the media.
“The boys made a mistake. They’re not the first to make a mistake and they won’t be the last.
“This process took place within the ECB and we were all part of it. I think we have handled the process quite well for some time now. They have been reprimanded severely.
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Nasser Hussein believes Harry Brooke should be allowed to put things right
“And, to be honest, I find it very annoying that we keep talking about it endlessly.
“When Brookie made that comment he was clearly trying to protect another player. I personally don’t read the media so I didn’t notice the comment until it was said to me. Harry is trying to look after his mate.”
“He is a strong leader and although he is a young man, he has a very solid brain.
“I know people are going to say he’s not that smart and I couldn’t agree more with that opinion. He wears his intelligence lightly and is the kind of player who plays in the dressing room.”
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Harry Brook admits he is lucky to still be England’s white-ball captain after his altercation with a nightclub bouncer on the eve of a match, adding that supporters have a right to be angry at his actions.
“I feel like a lot of things were completely out of whack.”
The England and Wales Cricket Board is conducting a winter investigation into behavior after a series of incidents, including Ben Duckett being accused of resembling a “stag do” and photographed looking badly worn during a trip to Noosa.
“I don’t think the boys overdid it at all,” McCallum added. “In fact, I thought a lot of the pile-ons were completely off the mark.
“Noosa is where people retire and there was a reason why we chose Noosa, it was created as a place for this big stag.
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England national team managing director Rob Key backed McCullum, saying he was the best person to continue leading England despite the heavy defeat to Australia.
“It was nothing like that. If I wanted deer and I wanted hideout, I would have gone to the Gold Coast.
“It’s not all about what’s happening on the field. If we did that, we wouldn’t last long in this game. Again, the aftermath of that, the pile-on from that, I think a lot of things were completely out of whack.”
“At the end of the day, they’re good cricketers. That’s their talent. They’re not fully formed people yet.”
A late night curfew has been introduced for players during their stay in Sri Lanka and the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Mr McCallum said after Ashes that he was keen to remain in charge, depending on the changes that were imposed.
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Despite the 4-1 loss to the Ashes, McCullum said he wanted to remain England’s head coach.
He said that’s still the case and laughed off the idea of opposing the curfew.
“Going back to the day I started this job, the first thing I said to these boys was, ‘Don’t do anything that’s going to be on the front page of the newspaper. Nothing good happens after midnight,'” McCallum said.
“I think the misconception out there is that I just want people to go and play all the time and not worry about cricket and run this loose ship.
“This couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m very determined and fiercely competitive. We’re going to have a good time, grow and have fun.”
“I want the best for them. I want to make sure we take care of them.”
England T20 World Cup fixtures (1st round)
Always UK and Ireland. All matches will be streamed live on Sky Sports
vs Nepal (Sunday 8 February) – Mumbai (9.30am) vs West Indies (Wednesday 11 February) – Mumbai (1.30pm) vs Scotland (Saturday 14 February) – Kolkata (9.30am) vs Italy (Monday 16 February) – Kolkata (9.30am)
Watch every match of the Men’s T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports from February 7th to March 8th. Get Sky Sports now and stream without a contract.
