McCullum Backs Brook's Captaincy and England's Lessons After Consolation Win Over Sri Lanka

Lahore: England white-ball coach Brendon McCullum believes his team will take valuable lessons from a chastening tri-series in Pakistan, but he praised the players' resilience and especially Harry Brook's captaincy after a hard-fought consolation win over Sri Lanka in the final fixture. England had been in serious danger of a fourth successive defeat and a third loss in a row from a seemingly dominant position when they entered the final ten overs in Lahore. Ben Duckett's 167 had helped set Sri Lanka a formidable target of 387, but Pavan Rathnayake, the hero of Sri Lanka's 430-run chase in Rawalpindi the previous week, again threatened to take the game away. Sri Lanka reached 300 for 5 after 40 overs, leaving the match finely balanced. This time, England found the breakthroughs that had eluded them at the death in recent defeats. Liam Dawson was the key bowler, finishing with 4 for 49 in ten overs. His spell helped England wrest control and close out the game. McCullum said the performance was very satisfying because the team was put under pressure again but responded with the required wickets and composure. McCullum said the tri-series was partly about giving experience to players. England have talent, he said, but not a deeply experienced one-day side, so being exposed to pressure situations in Pakistan was important. He admitted England were probably behind the game when Sri Lanka were five down, but Brook slowed the tempo, made tactical plays and helped the team get the wickets it needed. McCullum was full of praise for Brook's leadership and tactics, describing him as one of the best tactical captains he has come across. He said Brook is an astute cricket brain who wears his intelligence lightly, commands the respect of the dressing room and leads interactively by calling on other players as well. McCullum said Brook will have learned enormously from being thrust into high-pressure situations where the game moves at breakneck speed and decisions can win or lose matches. England were gutted not to have a chance of reaching the final, especially after Sri Lanka's win over Pakistan on Monday ended their mathematical hopes. However, McCullum insisted the team remains on track for the 50-over World Cup in South Africa next year. England will travel to Australia later this week for a warm-up match against Western Australia and three ODIs. McCullum said England will assess what they got right and what they did not, and will keep working to improve. He said the goal is to be a team that can challenge seriously for the World Cup in 12 months, and while England know they must get better, he is confident they will learn from this experience. There were several individual positives. Brook made a career-best 202 against Sri Lanka, Duckett scored back-to-back hundreds in the final two games, and Tom Banton made three fifties at the top of the order. Dawson took seven wickets at 21.42, a notable return after he was picked ahead of senior spinner Adil Rashid, who was omitted for the final three games. McCullum said Dawson did really well and that left-arm spin was a consistent threat across the tournament, especially through Pakistan's Arafat Minhas, who topped the averages with nine wickets at 16.11. He said legspin did not play a big role for any of the three teams and that England want to be adaptable and malleable with selections depending on conditions. Dawson, he added, is an experienced and highly competitive player who put his hand up, while conditions probably went against Rashid on this occasion. Overall, England's tri-series was mixed. They missed the final and were exposed at times, but the tour gave several players experience and produced encouraging individual performances. McCullum believes the lessons will hold England in good stead as they build towards the World Cup, with Brook's captaincy and Dawson's bowling among the most significant gains.