The Albany Gazette - McCullum urges England to 'box smart' like New Zealand

Next week's opener against the Black Caps at Lord's will be England's first Test since January, when a woeful tour of Australia ended in a 4-1 Ashes series loss.

"They are probably a great example of where we're in scenarios where we can improve, where we can finesse and sharpen what we're trying to achieve," McCullum, a former New Zealand captain, told a press conference in London on Friday.

"They're very resourceful and they hang in games for a long period of time.

"They may not necessarily have as much knockout power as some teams around the world but they box smarter than most teams in the world and hence why they've been as successful as they have for a long period of time."

McCullum was particularly admiring of a New Zealand attack that, even without the injured Matt Henry, skittled Ireland in this week's one-off Test in Belfast that also serves as a warm-up for the England series.

"They've got one of the most exciting bowling line-ups in the world," he said. "It's going to be incredibly difficult. It's going to be a stern examination for us.

"And we're going to have to be at our best to overcome the variation that their bowling line-up has," he added.

England were criticised for persisting with an overly aggressive approach in Australia regardless of the match, with the so-called 'Bazball' style a hallmark of McCullum's five years at the helm alongside captain Ben Stokes.

They have yet to win any of their four Test series in total against heavyweights Australia and India under McCullum, with England often unable to cement promising positions in games.

- 'Poise' -

"I'd like to see us become a team that people can recognise for how we play, the positivity we play with, the aggression we play with, but just recognise some of those key moments, where games can be won and lost," explained McCullum.

"And just have enough poise to be able to make the plays that you need to be able to close out some of those situations more regularly."

England have been criticised for prioritising their style of play above actual results but McCullum insisted: "Winning has always been important... it's never been purely about playing entertaining cricket.

"Some of the messages might have been slightly mixed around that but there's always been a fierce ambition to succeed. We want to be a team which plays brave because we feel that playing brave gives you the best opportunity."

And while there were calls for McCullum to be sacked after the Ashes debacle, he insisted he'd never faltered in his determination to see out a contract that runs until next year's home series with Australia and the subsequent 50-over World Cup in southern Africa.

"I was always very keen to try and finish the job that we started," said the 44-year-old.

"That never changed. It never wavered. We've got a lot of optimism about where this cricket team can get to and we're realistic about areas where we've fallen short.

"It's not about reinventing the team per se, it's about sharpening what we've been doing and being a better version."

(O.Robinson--TAG)