World Cup 2023: Need to stay true to their method – Brendon McCullum backs England to bounce after Afghanistan loss

England’s Test head coach Brendon McCullum has put his weight behind the Jos Buttler-led team and said they need to stay true to their method in the ongoing World Cup 2023. England is well known for their aggressive approach but they were stunned by Afghanistan by a margin of 69 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi.

Afghanistan posted a par score of 284 runs on the board after Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored a fine knock of 80 runs off just 57 balls. But England was skittled out for 215 runs as none of their batters could show resistance, barring Harry Brook, who scored 66.

The defending champions had also lost their opening clash against New Zealand by nine wickets but won comprehensively against Bangladesh.

Speaking to Mirror Sport, Brendon McCullum said, “They just need to stay true to their method and their style which has brought them so much success and not get shaken by the odd bad day at the office. Of course, the boys would have liked to be 3 and 0, but sport doesn’t work like that and sometimes you have to cope with challenges and then show how good you are.

“One thing is for sure, there are good reasons why England have won two World Cups recently. They are doing a great job and have done so for a long time and I’m just looking forward to seeing them show their quality over the next few weeks.”

McCullum, who has played an instrumental role in imbibing an aggressive approach into the English team, said there will be an odd upset in the ongoing World Cup and England should move on to upcoming matches.

“It is a World Cup, so there is going to be the odd upset and that is what you want in a tournament like this. Look at what happened to South Africa. That was a strong win from the Dutch and there will be other unexpected results before the tournament is over.

“Playing cricket in India against the nine other top nations in a World Cup is never going to be a walk in the park, but this is what they boys play the game for. This is what gets them excited and I’m sure that we will see the best of them soon enough.”

England will aim to bounce back after their shocking loss and they will next face South Africa at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Saturday.