Brendon McCullum insists England should “not get shaken by the odd bad day at the office” as they attempt to get their World Cup campaign back on track.
Test coach McCullum was an exasperated observer as Matthew Mott’s team were humbled by Afghanistan on Sunday – their second defeat in three games as they look to defend the title they won in thrilling fashion against New Zealand in 2019.
Next up for England are South Africa, who themselves suffered a shock defeat to the Netherlands yesterday.
McCullum, who is in Mumbai on business and staying in the same hotel as the one-day team, told The Mirror: “They just need to stay true to their method and their style which has brought them so much success and not get shaken by the odd bad day at the office.
“Of course the boys would have liked to be 3 and 0, but sport doesn’t work like that and sometimes you have to cope with challenges and then show how good you are. One thing is for sure, there are good reasons why England have won two World Cups recently.
“There is going to be the odd upset and that is what you want in a tournament like this.
“Look at what happened to South Africa. That was a strong win from the Dutch and there will be other unexpected results before the tournament is over.”
Pure joy 🥰 🇦🇫#CWC23 #ENGvAFG pic.twitter.com/3QVGrEPlRD
— ICC Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) October 15, 2023
McCullum is confident England can turn their fortunes around, starting against the Proteas at the weekend.
He added: “It was good to see the boys out here and have a brief catch-up with Motty.
“They are doing a great job and have done so for a long time and I’m just looking forward to seeing them show their quality over the next few weeks.
“Playing cricket in India against the nine other top nations in a World Cup is never going to be a walk in the park, but this is what they boys play the game for. This is what gets them excited and I’m sure that we will see the best of them soon enough.”
