Brendon McCullum says there is a bit of “maverick and genius” in Ben Stokes, after the England captain led his side to a historic sweep in Pakistan.
England beat the hosts by eight wickets in the final Test in Karachi – Stokes (35no) sharing a third-wicket partnership with Ben Duckett (82no) to see the visitors home – as they became the first team to win 3-0 in Pakistan.
McCullum, who along with Stokes has ushered in a new era of Test cricket since taking over as head coach, heaped praise on his captain after a ninth win in 10 Tests followed a run of one victory in 17 prior to their appointments.
McCullum told Sky Sports: “The skipper never lets the game drift, he has always got something and the guys follow him. It makes it pretty easy when you’re watching in the coach’s box.
“We’ve seen what he does on the field. There is maverick in it and genius in a lot of it. He has an insatiable appetite to keep moving the game forward, which is super impressive.
“For me, it’s the man management, the consistency of message, the pure passion and drive to make a significant difference in Test cricket and a significant difference in English cricket.
“I feel lucky to have taken this job when Stokesy has the reins. He is just going to get better and better, which is quite scary.”
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Full highlights from the fourth day of the third Test in Karachi as England clinched a historic 3-0 series sweep in Pakistan
‘I do b****r all… it’s an easy job!’
McCullum downplayed his own impact on the team, adding: “This side is very much in the image of Stokesy. He wants the guys to go out there and play with the most amount of freedom they can.
“He wants to do something significant and wants to make a real impact, not just on the game, but on other people’s careers.
“He has identified taking away that pressure and allowing the talent and skill to come out. Skill and talent is not a question when it comes to the England cricket side.
“All we try and do is remain consistent with the messaging, have a smile on your face and encourage guys to go out and allow their talent to come out.
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Stokes digests the historic 3-0 sweep and hails his side’s no-fear attitude, teenage spinner Rehan Ahmed and head coach Brendon McCullum
“I do b****r all. I just make sure the guys remain consistent with their own beliefs.
“They all want to be the best version of themselves, they all want to be the best cricketer they can be and play in a winning team and make a difference to the game worldwide.
“When you have all of that, you really just have to make sure guys are on task every now and then and try to make sure if things do go down a slightly negative path any some stage, you remind them what we are about.
“It’s a really easy job and I am enjoying myself. I couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity.
McCullum ‘proud’ of England
“I am incredibly proud [of the team]. You know you are going to have to work hard in Pakistan and will be tested in different ways. We were tested off the field and on the field.
“They guys stuck together and kept taking the game and this team’s mantra forward. There were some defining moments, where we could easily have lost games, but the guys were able to find ways to win.
You watch every training session, he (Brendon McCullum) walks around and speaks to every single player. Checking in seeing how they are, seeing if their mindset is right, seeing if they are taking the options that are right for the mantra of the team. He is an incredible man manager.
“The way Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett started [in Rawalpindi], laid a marker down for this team and how brave they want to be. That was a huge day for us, and it allowed us to force a result in that game.
“It’s one thing scoring fast and putting teams under pressure with the bat, but you have to be able to bowl teams out. Every time we have the ball in hand, it’s about trying to take wickets. If you go for runs, you go for runs but we’ll back ourselves in that mindset and chase the runs later on.
“Once you have that mindset you free yourself and it allows you to look at things with a positive mantra.”
McCullum: Ahmed isn’t the finished product
England have also made bold selections, including awarding a debut to 18-year-old leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed in Karachi.
The Leicestershire all-rounder became the youngest man to make a Test appearance for England and then the youngest from any country to take a Test five-for on debut.
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Check out each of Ahmed’s wickets as the England teenager became the youngest man to take a five-wicket haul on Test debut
McCullum said England’s players were emotional after Ahmed was handed his cap by Nasser Hussain.
“There were a few tears after that. Even a couple of days into it, the boys are still talking about how amazing that moment was,” added McCullum.
“You never take it for granted. Rehan is an amazing story. He loves the game, his family love the game. He has a huge amount of talent and ability.
“We will give him the time to develop at his own pace and give him the opportunities. He couldn’t have been any more impressive so far.
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England leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed, 18, says his five-wicket haul on debut against Pakistan was ‘a dream come true’
“He isn’t near the finished product but we will nurture that over the next few years to allow him to get to where he wants to get to, try and get him playing as much cricket as he can in the shortest period of time.
“We will end up benefitting from it. It’s up to us to ensure that when he is with us that he comes with the same positivity and over time his skill level will continue to increase. Just don’t rush him.”
