Perth: England head coach Brendon McCullum believes his team is prepared for the Ashes series that could be ‘defining’ for them.
Since taking charge in 2022, McCullum and captain Ben Stokes have rejuvenated the England Test team, and the former New Zealand captain said the Englishmen have been ‘building to this moment’ come the first Test in Perth starting on Friday.
“There’s nothing bigger than what we’re about to come into. This team has been together for a good couple of years and we have been building towards this moment. It is the biggest stage and it is the brightest lights. It is a series that could define teams, the people and players within it. That’s OK. You know you’re ready, you know you have the game to compete at this level. Stay together, play the style you have become accustomed to and we’ll see in a couple of months where we land,” McCullum told BBC Sport.
England are set to confirm their XI for the first Test on Thursday, with spinner Shoaib Bashir likely to be excluded from the 12-man squad announced on Wednesday. This suggests the tourists will feature a five-man pace attack, likely the fastest they’ve assembled for a Test match.
“I’m super excited and probably a little bit more relaxed now than I was a few weeks ago. We’ve got our team to the start line. I feel like our horse is going to run well. Whether we find another horse in the race that is better than us, who knows,” he added. IANS
Also Read: Bangladesh stalwart Mushfiqur Rahim enters exclusive centurion club