White-ball prodigy Jacob Bethell โ who is yet to score a first-class century โ is the only recognised batsman outside the current XI in Englandโs squad, and is expected to be a Boxing Day replacement for besieged No.3 Ollie Pope.
McCullum told English broadcaster TNT Sports that team changes are likely in Melbourne, but that no reinforcements would be called up from outside the touring party.
Brendon McCullum faces the English press pack.Credit: Getty Images
Englandโs lack of match practice before the first three Tests has drawn fierce criticism from past players. A three-day game at Lilac Hill against the English Lions was their only lead-in match to the series opener.
This masthead revealed England knocked back the option of playing Australia A in a fully-fledged warm-up match, while Test players also skipped the pink-ball PMs XI clash in favour of net sessions before the second Test.
โWhen youโve lost 3-0, youโve got to put your hand up and say, โMaybe I didnโt get that preparation right?โโ McCullum said.
โCould we have done more leading into game one? And could we have done less [training] leading into game two? Ultimately [as coach], youโre responsible for that.โ
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After England kindled hopes of a miracle fourth-innings run-chase in Adelaide, McCullum gave credit to Australiaโs relentless approach while lamenting that his own sideโs best cricket only emerged when the series was all but gone.
โI feel like the previous sort of nine days, weโre so caught up and so driven to achieve something and succeed that weโve almost got in our own way, and weโve stymied our talent and our skill and our ability,โ McCullum said
โItโs only been the last two days weโve kind of let go and just played that weโve actually competed and probably had our best two days of the tour.โ
On the galling nature of Englandโs loss, Stokes added: โIt obviously sucks. Knowing now that we canโt achieve what we set out to do here is obviously incredibly disappointing now.
โWe have still got two games to go in the series, there is still a hell of a lot to play for … we arenโt going to turn around and kick the stumps over because we lost the series here, because thereโs still so much more to play for.โ
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