England sustained a hefty loss in their recently concluded white ball series against India. After a 4-1 series defeat in T20Is, the Men in Blue managed to dominate England in the ODI series, defeating them across all three matches and registering brilliant wins.
Throughout the series, there were several things said about the visitors. From reviews of their subpar performances to several reactions from the players, the series has been one to forget for the side and fans alike. One of the most discussed topics from the series has been the visitors’ training habits.
Former India cricketer Ravi Shastri had claimed that with the exception of Joe Root, England had not participated in any net sessions for the ODI series. Where England skipper Jos Buttler had already refuted those claims, the side’s head coach Brendon McCullum also took centre stage and revealed that the claim that England did not train is incorrect.
“Firstly, it’s factually incorrect, the whole statement that we don’t train. We’ve trained plenty right throughout; guys have come from a lot of cricket as well. I think it’s an easy thing to have as a throwaway line that guys don’t train enough when the results aren’t right,” McCullum told talkSPORT.
“But we’ve got a style and a method that we believe in. We’ve got guys who are battling injuries and trying to make sure that we’ve got enough bodies out on the field, knowing that we’ve got a huge assignment coming up in a week or two. Ultimately it’s factually incorrect what’s been said, and we’ll stay true to what we believe in,” he added.
It is worth noting that England took on the role of the white ball head coach in January 2025, and despite having lost the tour against India, the former New Zealand cricketer revealed that his side would be taking a lot of learnings from the tour. Interestingly, England will be spending their upcoming few days in the UAE before they go on to Lahore and kick off their Champions Trophy 25025 campaign against Australia on February 22.
