RHODRI EVANS looks at the immediate challenges facing the new red-ball coach ahead of a busy summer that includes the visits of New Zealand, India and South Africa
It would be easy to rip it up and start again considering England’s recent dismal run in Test matches, but, of the top seven that played in the West Indies, most will remain.
Dan Lawrence, currently sidelined with a hamstring injury, is expected to miss out and is the most likely not to be fit come June 2 and Lord’s.
Ben Stokes has confirmed that Joe Root will bat at No.4 while he will drop down to No.6. It remains to be seen whether Jonny Bairstow, currently in the IPL with Punjab Kings, is deemed ready after two months of exclusively playing white-ball cricket.
The remaining berths will likely come down to a straight fight between Ollie Pope, now fully recovered from a bout of illness, is delivering again in the LV=Insurance County Championship. Few middle-order batters are coming in hotter than Yorkshire's Harry Brook, while Josh Bohannon of Lancashire is the next cab off the uncapped rank.
Among the options is moving an out-of-form Zak Crawley back to No.3 position and bringing in an opener, perhaps from the list of previous cast-offs. Rory Burns and Dom Sibley have both hit sufficient form to be considered again while Sussex captain Tom Haines has enjoyed a fine last 18 months.
Initially, though, McCullum’s job will about inspiring confidence in the incumbents rather than plucking England’s next great hope from county cricket, which he can hardly be expected to do days and weeks into his tenure.
Joe Root and Ben Stokes are the only secure names in the top six (Randy Brooks/Getty Images)
A theme of Root and Alastair Cook’s reigns as captain were their pragmatic approaches to leadership. By contrast, McCullum was a front-foot leader with New Zealand.
Watching four slips line up behind Ian Bell and Moeen Ali at the 2015 World Cup was a classic McCullum move, a tactic that ended with England being bowled out for 123 as Tim Southee took 7 for 33.
As captain of the Kiwis across the formats, he cultivated an attacking mindset and gave his team the freedom to play without fear. If he can do the same as a coach, he will succeed in changing the fortunes of a stale side.
Looking forward, McCullum's philosophy tallies well with that of skipper Stokes perhaps making a left-field appointment a bit more understandable.
As with McCullum's New Zealand, this period for the England Test team might not be completely successful but it will certainly contain enterprising passages of play.
England have spent much of the last 12 months watching their rivals celebrate (Randy Brooks/ Getty Images)
Arriving straight from the Indian Premier League following the end of his Kolkata Knight Riders tenure, McCullum’s immediate task is to deliver results. Philosophy and a way of playing can wait for a side who are one win from their last 17.
New Zealand and South Africa pose a challenge, particularly given they are well set up for English conditions. The Black Caps won in England for the first time since 1999 and are reigning World Test Championship holders, while The Proteas - off-field issues aside - arrive off the back of beating India on home soil over the winter.
Though still a side at the development stage, they have a formidable bowling attack in the form of Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen, and Simon Harmer. Their batting lineup, however, can be vulnerable.
These series sandwich the return of India for the conclusion of last summer's curtailed Test series, though few see it that way. That said, it is another test of the new regime.
Whether it’s fair or not, McCullum will ultimately be judged on results which surely cannot get much worse. You'd think.
Is it time for Matt Parkinson? (LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)
England consistently looked beyond a front-line spin option under Chris Silverwood. Conditions of course play a part, but that Joe Root, Joe Denly or Dan Lawrence were considered passable always irked many.
Jack Leach, generally considered to be first choice, has only played five of his 22 Tests - over more than four years, at home. The ratio is better for Dom Bess, but he played just 14 Tests since his 2018 debut.
It would correlate with McCullum's attacking instincts to field a front-line spinner and that might open the door to the leg-spinner Matt Parkinson, who has enjoyed a fine start to the season with Lancashire.
Silverwood’s job was made more complex towards the end of his tenure when the removal of Ed Smith as national selector saw the responsibility for picking the squad and playing XI fall into his lap.
Selection, rest, rotation and availability were some of the main buzzwords of England Test cricket last year and some clarity is badly needed.
A national selector will return, according to managing director Rob Key, but there will need to be some synergy with McCullum and Stokes regarding the type of players they want and the brand of cricket they wish to promote.
Stitching together all those individual moving parts is the toughest ask of them all and McCullum will very much sit in the middle.
Paul Collingwood led England in the West Indies (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Paul Collingwood led as interim head coach in the Caribbean, supported by Marcus Trescothick, Jon Lewis, Jeetan Patel, James Foster and Richard Dawson.
It remains to be seen what kind of say McCullum has over the make-up of his backroom team. Lewis, Patel and Trescothick all have contracts with the ECB after being installed on a permanent basis in March 2021.
Foster, meanwhile, was a wicketkeeping consultant in the West Indies but his links with KKR mean he could well be retained.
As for those who could come in from the outside, David Hussey – former Australian international and brother of Mike – has been a mentor for McCullum’s Knight Riders since 2019 and would add weight to the batting department.
Another from the KKR and New Zealand family is former sprinter Chris Donaldson. Donaldson is the current head of strength and conditioning for KKR and the Kiwis. Phil Scott and Darren Veness currently head up the team for England.
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