England white-ball cricket: What will Brendon McCullum have learned from West Indies tour?

The Brendon McCullum era for English white-ball cricket is about to begin.

The Test coach will also be in charge of the limited-overs team from January, taking on the dual role following the departure of Matthew Mott after England’s semi-final exit at this year’s T20 World Cup.

Marcus Trescothick led the white-ball boys on an interim basis – he hopes to one day become England’s permanent head coach – starting with a home assignment against Australia in September.

He then presided over a 2-1 ODI series defeat in the West Indies, in which the players’ lack of 50-over experience told, before a 3-1 win in the T20 internationals that followed.

So, what will McCullum have gleaned from England’s trip to the Caribbean, which featured a number of fringe and/or promising players as well as the return from a calf injury of captain Jos Buttler?

Livingstone thrives on added responsibility

Liam Livingstone went from bit part to big part for England in the Caribbean.

After years of batting down the order at No 7 and bowling a few overs of spin here and there, he was initially dropped for this summer’s ODI series against Australia before form in the T20s, coupled with Buttler’s injury setback, saw him recalled.

With Buttler also missing the ODIs in the West Indies, Livingstone was charged with leading the side and played a true captain’s knock to take England to victory in the second match, in Antigua.

A superbly-paced 124 not out from 85 balls from the No 5 spot, in which he reached his half-century from 60 balls and three figures just 17 deliveries later, rallied England from 160-4 in a chase of 329.

Batting above No 6 for only the third time in 32 one-day internationals, Livingstone showed composure at first and then devastating power later on with no bowler spared once he passed fifty. According to Sir Alastair Cook, it was a “coming of age” knock.”

Livingstone said afterwards that he expects to be relegated down the order when England are at full strength, with Buttler to return to the 50-over side and the likes of Harry Brook, Joe Root, Ben Duckett and potentially Ben Stokes to come in.

But perhaps McCullum would be best served leaving Livingstone at No 5. With extra responsibility, came greater results. It was what Livingstone had asked for and he duly delivered.

Mahmood a menace with the new ball

Saqib Mahmood is another that might fear being shunted out of the picture when England’s first-choice battery of fast bowlers returns – Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse and Reece Topley, who was injured again on this trip .

But he may well have muscled his way into the frame by way of his series-starring performances in the Caribbean that saw him take nine wickets across the first three of his four appearances.

Barbados is where he made his Test debut in 2022 – an impressive one at that, taking four wickets in the game – and he again looked right at home in Bridgetown as he returned career-best figures of 4-34 for England in their series-opening win there.

That was followed up with 2-20 at the same venue a day later, and 3-17 in the third T20 at St Lucia as England clinched the series – Mahmood’s tone-setting spells with the new ball playing a crucial role in the tourists’ triumph.

Of his nine scalps, the 27-year-old took eight of them inside the opening powerplays – a record in a bilateral T20 series – as he made the most of some lavish movement on offer early on.

His incisive spells were something England dearly lacked in the early overs of their T20 World Cup title defence earlier this year, and after forming a potent new-ball partnership with Jofra Archer in T20 cricket, perhaps the pair could unite again in ODIs?

Buttler’s return as captain proves crucial

Sticking with Mahmood, he paid tribute to the “amazing” captaincy of Buttler as he enjoyed a successful return as white-ball captain for the T20 leg of the tour.

Buttler’s position has been under the microscope following the surrender of both limited-overs World Cups in the last 12 months, earning a stay of execution that was not afforded to former head coach Matthew Mott.

Buttler has been aggressive with his field placings – the distant influence of McCullum perhaps already on show – and gave up the wicketkeeping gloves in the Caribbean to be closer to his bowlers. It appears to have paid off, with Mahmood crediting the move for some of his nine wickets in the series.

“I’ve enjoyed working with him again, it’s slightly different to when he’s got the gloves, to have him at mid-on,” Mahmood said. “He made a couple of calls which paid off for us.

“To [Shimron] Hetmyer, we were trying to pitch the ball up and he asked ‘what do you reckon to a bumper?’ I tried it and he was caught at deep square leg. His captaincy has been amazing.”

Buttler’s brilliance with the bat has been back to somewhere approaching his best, too.

He was unfortunate to fall for a first-ball duck to a sensational Gudakesh Motie catch in the first T20 but followed that up with a match-winning 83 off only 45 balls in the second.

But, just as crucially as smashing sixes, the smile is back on the skipper’s face

Bethell showcases his considerable talent

Eyebrows were raised – and possibly a few county batters offended – when 21-year-old Jacob Bethell was called up to England’s Test squad as batting cover for the upcoming New Zealand tour, despite the fact he is yet to score a hundred and averages 25 in first-class cricket.

A few dazzling innings in the white-ball game won’t silence all the critics but they do show that England have a player with oodles of talent, and one that may just become a fixture across all formats.

With presence, power and a carefree attitude, he is right out of the McCullum mould.

Building on some impressive cameos against Australia at the back end of the home summer, left-hander Bethell struck three fifties in his native West Indies – he was born in Barbados and lived there for the first 14 years of his life – with one half-century in the ODIs and two in the T20s.

After a knock of 55 in the second ODI, one that was a little overshadowed by Livingstone’s memorable ton, Bethell cracked an unbeaten 58 from 36 balls as England romped to victory in the first T20I in Barbados, with his innings appreciated by friends, family and a huge fan club.

The youngster passed fifty again in the fourth T20 – in some style and at some speed, nailing a 22-ball half-century with the third of three consecutive sixes off West Indies spinner Roston Chase. He ended up unbeaten on 62 from 32 balls.

There is no guarantee that Bethell will be able to transfer this success to the Test arena but England have not got too many, if any, of their red-ball selections wrong under McCullum and captain Stokes, even if the team’s results have tailed off of late.

Lessons to learn from latest ODI series defeat

England’s tour of the Caribbean wasn’t a total success, with the preceding ODIs seeing the side slip to a third consecutive series defeat after a 13th loss in their last 20 games inclusive of the 2023 Cricket World Cup.

Again shorn of regular first-teamers – the likes of Buttler, Root, Brook, Wood and Chris Woakes – it was no great surprise to see England’s under-strength outfit falter in all too familiar fashion.

Of the 62 ODIs England have played since their 2019 World Cup win, their best batter Root has played in only 28 of them, Stokes even fewer at 19, with their participation on Test tours – such as the ones of Pakistan and New Zealand that bookend this West Indies series – prioritised amid an increasingly jam-packed schedule.

Jordan Cox debuted at No 3 against West Indies, a position he has never played at domestic List A level, putting his underwhelming return of 22 runs throughout the series in some sort of context.

It also shows that England perhaps need to find a way to get their players involved in more 50-over cricket, with the One-Day Cup currently clashing with The Hundred and the best white-ball cricketers inevitably featuring in the latter.

McCullum won’t be able to solve that issue but can address a lack of clarity. England have dished out 25 ODI debut caps since their 2019 World Cup triumph – four on this tour alone – but only five have since surpassed double figures in terms of appearances (Livingstone, Brook, Phil Salt, Will Jacks and Carse).

The pathway for these players needs to be clearer, so that they’re not soon consigned to the scrap heap a la Tom Banton, Sam Hain and George Scrimshaw before them.