Stokes says he must work differently with McCullum

Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum took charge of the England Test team in 2022 [Getty Images]

England captain Ben Stokes said suggestions of a rift with Brendon McCullum have been overstated, but acknowledged he must work with the head coach in a "slightly different way".

The messages from Stokes and McCullum appeared to diverge during England's 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia.

Stokes asked his players to dig in, and did so himself with his own batting tempo. In contrast, McCullum believed England moved away from the aggression that had previously brought them success.

At the end of the series, Stokes said opponents had worked out how to play against England.

Last month, director of cricket Rob Key said there had been no "bust-up" between the two. Stokes, McCullum and Key are all to remain in their jobs following a review of the Ashes conducted by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

In his first interview since the Ashes, Stokes told the ECB: "I'm very confident in mine and Brendon's ability to be able to work together, because we've done it for such a long period of time now.

"But work together in a slightly different way. The main point of me and Brendon is our alignment towards winning things and making this team as good as they can be."

Stokes and McCullum joined forces in charge of the Test team in 2022 and had instant success, winning 10 of their first 11 Tests.

Since then, England have had more losses than wins – 17 to 16. The defeat in Australia followed a 2-2 home draw against India.

Stokes and McCullum publicly backed each other at the end of the Ashes, but by that time had given differing messages to the media, fuelling suggestions of a rift. McCullum was also noticeably effusive about the leadership of white-ball captain Harry Brook during the T20 World Cup which followed the Ashes.

But all-rounder Stokes said any notion he is not "aligned" with the New Zealander is a "massive overstatement".

"We agree 95% of the time on things, but those 5% things that we might have different views on, we talk about it between each other and then we end up getting to the place where we want to get to," said Stokes.

"Agreeing on every single thing, that's just impossible."

• England 'feckless, reckless and legless' in Ashes

The ECB has released a near-three-minute clip of the interview with Stokes, with the full conversation set to be published on Wednesday.

McCullum will return to the UK in May, before the Test series against New Zealand in June. As part of the Ashes review, it is understood the ECB would like the coach to speak to the media more often – he usually only conducts interviews after England have lost.

Both Stokes and McCullum are contracted to England until 2027. Stokes, 34, has a deal that expires at the end of the next Ashes, while McCullum's contract runs to the end of the World Cup that follows.

"With what me and Brendon were able to achieve with the group over a four-year period, I just couldn't imagine doing what we were trying to do with anyone else," said Stokes.

"We're both very proud men in what we do. We put a lot of our heart and soul into this job. Brendon certainly has for the four years he's done it so far, and hopefully we'll still be together at the end of 2027, winning what we want to win."

Stokes is recovering from a broken cheekbone, suffered when he was hit by a ball while coaching Durham's academy players in early February.

The injury has so far prevented him from playing for Durham in this season's County Championship, with a potential return coming away to Worcestershire on 8 May.

• Get cricket news sent straight to your phone