Over recent weeks, the England cricket hierarchy has been at pains to show it has learned lessons from a dismal Ashes in Australia. Chief executive Richard Gould, director Rob Key and captain Ben Stokes have led a charm offensive aimed at showing they really do care about county cricket, that they will not be giving failing England players any more leeway, and that preparing for a Test series might actually be a good thing.
Stokes grabbed more attention this week with another interview on the ECB website, in which he insisted his relationship with head coach Brendon McCullum is not strained by a difference of opinion on England’s approach, and that they are “95 per cent aligned”.
