McCullum wants England to lead the way in revitalising Test cricket

BRENDON McCULLUM says the twin challenges of reinvigorating “rockbottom” England and giving Test cricket a shot in the arm provided an irresistible pull.

McCullum (right) was appointed Test head coach yesterday and said he was attracted to that position over the white-ball job because he wanted a role that was “grunty and meaty, not cushy”.

Speaking on radio station SENZ, ENZ McCullum said it had been an “emotional” time making a decision that will see him come up against the Black Caps in his first outing, at Lord’s on June 2.

“Rob Key asked if I was interested in the process,” he said. “As we got closer, going through the formalities, I thought, ‘This is something I could really do’. What an opportunity, and what a chance to be able to make a sizeable difference to a country as big as England.”

Part of the lure, he said, was reviving Test cricket, which he described as his “real love”.

“Test cricket is on a downward trend,” he said. “Whilst I’m lucky to have a career in franchise cricket, Tests are my real love. I look at it and think if anyone is able to reinvigorate Test cricket and make it popular to the next generation, it’s going to be England.

“If you can be at the forefront of that, playing an attractive brand, with a smile on your face, then it has a chance.” McCullum’s coaching experience since his retirement in 2019 has been entirely at T20 level, but he said working with England’s white-ball team did not appeal to him because of the position of strength that they find themselves in. Paul Collingwood remains the favourite to be coach of Eoin Morgan’s team.

“The white-ball [job] didn’t interest me too much,” he said. “That team is flying. I wasn’t interested in a cushy gig. If you are prepared to change your life for something, it’s got to be a bit grunty, meaty.

“The challenge of trying to bring a team that is rock-bottom out of that situation, that is where the challenge lay.”

ECB board advisor and former Test skipper Andrew Strauss said that McCullum “knocked his interview out the park”.

Strauss added on talkSPORT: “I know Brendon is so excited about the prospect of coming here and not just taking England forward, but taking Test cricket forward as well. It’s an exciting time.”