Brendon McCullum has relaxed so much into this tour of New Zealand that it wouldn’t have been surprising if he conducted his first media conference from a sun lounger in the team hotel. The team started with five days of golf, adrenaline sports, and team bonding at the luxurious Millbrook Resort near Queenstown. Then, they will move to Mount Maunganui ahead of next week’s first Test against New Zealand. Before that, they will attend a meeting at Hamilton’s Te Rapa racecourse where Defibrillate, a horse partly owned by McCullum, will aim for its second Group One win on Saturday.
England have 9 wins in 10 tests since McCullum took charge
However, behind McCullum’s aim to create a fun atmosphere lies a deeper intention. He wants to counteract the attraction of global T20 leagues which offer large sums of money and can pull players away from international cricket. These leagues also have the potential to attract even more players in the future.
“That is the thinking to be honest. There’s so many options these days that you’ve got to make Test cricket enjoyable not just on the field but off it too – try and get those guys to know when they board the plane to head overseas or jump into the car to head down to Lord’s or whatever it is to join up with the team they know they’re going to have a great time. The results will hopefully follow.”
McCullum admitted.
He further added
“In any job you do you want to have fun, otherwise what’s the point? We get one crack at life. If you’ve got some skills in something and some aspirations and dreams, would you not want to try to live those out and have a smile on your face while you’re doing it? Test cricket in particular is such a difficult game and these guys have so many options around the world, it’s not just about having fun on the field. It’s about being able to create some memories and relationships and friendships which last well beyond your cricketing careers. It’s not always going to be rosy, but the one thing you can is keep trying to bring that positive attitude, belief and try to look after one another.”
England will play two tests in the upcoming weeks against New Zealand.
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