England's bowlers have been given a licence to thrill by Brendon McCullum who has told them to ‘risk it for a wicket.’
The great Kiwi gambler has told the likes of Stuart Broad and James Anderson to get on a wicket hunt this week and leave their worries about conceding runs in the dressing room. McCullum is not interested in watching his bowlers send down maiden after maiden and building pressure hour after hour.
Instead there will be a push for wickets as quickly as possible, and if that means England will leak a few runs along the way, then so be it. “It’s the style of cricket they want us to play,” said the returning Broad. “And it's up to the players to deliver.
“When you see a Brendon McCullum and a Ben Stokes mindset come together it's pretty exciting.
“Brendon said to the bowling group: 'Don't focus too much on economy rates, I want wickets. Let's try and get as many wickets as we can, as soon as possible.’
“So it's: 'Where can I get an extra slip from? Where can I get a short leg from?' rather than being too defensive.
“I don't know Baz other than playing against him and having a couple of beers after a series, but I really respect the way that he played as a cricketer.
“I'm sure that there's certain things that he has a very clear direction on, but it is very much a case of: ‘As long as you're taking the positive option here, I’ll back you.’"
England begin their new era under the McCullum-Stokes partnership on Thursday at Lord's against New Zealand.
