England head coach Brendon McCullum has praised Harry Brook’s handling of recent controversy, but admitted his white-ball captain is “working on it” away from the cricket field.
Brook was fined £30,000 and warned for his actions by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after being punched by a nightclub bouncer in Wellington on the eve of a one-day international against New Zealand in November, which England lost by two wickets and the series 3-0.
Brook’s indiscretions only became public in January, when England lost 4-1 to the Ashes in Australia, at which point he claimed he was alone on the night out.
Over the weekend, he admitted lying to protect team-mates Jacob Bethell and Josh Tan, who were traveling together in New Zealand, and is currently being investigated by the Cricket Regulatory Authority, which is independent of the ECB and has powers to bring disparaging accusations.
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Brook admits he’s lucky to still be England’s white-ball captain after his altercation with a nightclub bouncer on the eve of the match
Despite the incident, Brook remained captain of England’s limited-overs team and impressed on the tour to Sri Lanka, leading them to a 2-1 victory in the ODI series and a 3-0 T20 victory.
“I thought Brookie was sensational with his tactics throughout both series,” McCullum said after England clinched victory in the series finale on Tuesday.
“He has struggled off the field recently, but putting that aside, he is a tough player who can lead his players in the way he used to and show that he has excellent tactical sense as a cricketer.
“I sometimes think people think Brookie is not that smart and I couldn’t agree more with that opinion. He wears his intelligence lightly. He has a very good tactical cricket mind.
“He’s a work in progress off the field. He’s not the only one doing it and it’s our job to guide him and help him get through it. But on the field, he’s definitely been good at this point.”
England begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Nepal on Sunday, with Bethel and Tan also part of the squad heading to India.
McCullum’s future has also been a topic of speculation following England’s very disappointing Ashes performance, with management’s handling of the Brook saga also under scrutiny.
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Moeen Ali believes McCullum is fit to lead England with a few adjustments.
He added: “He’s a tough guy, Brookie. He put his hand up and tried to protect his boys as well. Obviously, we’ve dealt with everything internally the way we think we need to, and he’s disciplined, the boys are disciplined, and obviously some very tough words were put to him.”
“But from there it was just about trying to support these guys. And Brookie was really great at acknowledging things, putting his hand up and still not losing his confidence, not getting distracted by what was going on, and being able to cross the line and get into the arena.”
Mr McCullum also reiterated the importance of looking after the mental health of international cricketers, especially given the grueling schedules faced by players like Brooke, who plays across all formats.
“Cricket is a very unique game because there are 12 months of the year,” McCullum said. “It’s not like any other game, you have to fight for 12 months every year.
“It’s mentally difficult for a lot of players and cricket has a history of problems in that area. So our job as leaders, and our job in English cricket, is to make sure these players are looked after.”
“Sure, you have to be disciplined when you make a mistake, but now it’s about being mindful of your mistakes, defending them, and trying to put space between when you make a mistake.”
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.
