McCullum to coach England’s Test team

Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum has been appointed as head coach of England’s Test team, the country’s cricket board (ECB) said. McCullum replaced Chris Silverwood who left the role in February after England were thrashed 4-0 in the Ashes in Australia, with Paul Collingwood stepping in as a caretaker coach.
McCullum, 40, is currently in charge of Indian Premier League side Kolkata Knight Riders but the ECB said he will be in place to start his role when New Zealand visit for a three-test series starting at Lord’s on June 2. “We are delighted to confirm Brendon as England men’s test head coach. It has been a real privilege to get to know him and understand his views and vision for the game,” ECB managing director Rob Key said in a statement.
“He has a recent history of changing cricket culture and environments for the better, and I believe he is the person to do that for England’s red-ball cricket. “We were incredibly fortunate to have a seriously strong list of quality candidates for the post, with Brendon demonstrating he was our number one choice. ”
McCullum played the last of his 101 tests at Christchurch in 2016 against Australia, where he hit the fastest ever century in the format (54 balls). He finished his career with 6,453 runs including 12 hundreds and 31 half-centuries.