The Thrill is Gone

CB on the sacking of the McCullum and England's awkward moments ahead

Is the ex still in the room with us now?

Brendon McCullum’s time as the head coach of the Test team has come to an end. He is, however, going to hang around and lead the white-ball teams.

It is a grown-up solution, and one that will stress-test whether two people really can be friends after a break-up. Harry, Jofra and Jacob will now spend their summers with Andy Flower, but they can still visit Brendon on the weekends.

On the surface, it’s a decision that makes sense, and also no doubt saves a bit on McCullum’s severance payout. England’s Test side is struggling, so he’s been removed from that post. But their T20 team is flying, so there he’s staying put. It might not work in the end, but it’s a reasonable starting position.

One area of concern however, is how it can work for English cricket’s main character over the last four years now to be operating off-Broadway. Test is still best here. And the man who used to have cricket named after him, now won’t be calling the shots.