Brendon McCullum, the captain of the New Zealand cricket team, is considered by most cricket followers around the world to be the greatest leader in cricket today. How McCullum transformed an average cricket team from a country of just 4 million people, where cricket is not even the most popular sport, into one of the most breathtakingly exciting sides in world cricket – is a tale that will forever be a part of cricketing folklore.
McCullum, it may be argues, has not just saved New Zealand cricket, but has saved world cricket as well, which was so far only dominated by four teams – India, Australia, South Africa and England, with other teams passing into irrelevance. The survival of world cricket required something phenomenal from a country outside of cricket’s Big 4, and that’s exactly what has happened with McCullum and his Kiwis.
McCullum has just one policy that is a constant in every team meeting and in all match situations – Attack, Attack and Attack! That’s how McCullum approaches his game, whether in batting or on in captaincy. His incredibly confident, no quarters asked, none given approach has made the Kiwi side the most exciting team to look forward to in world cricket.
Yes, McCullum has lost many matches because of his aggressive attitude, but he wins more than he loses. And there is still a long way to go before his Kiwi side catches up on their neighbors, the Australians, as the loss in the World Cup final proves so well.
McCullum says, when asked about his attacking approach, “We just feel that’s our best chance of success. Some people would say it’s a gamble but I think it’s more authentic to us to play like that than to try and hang in there, so if you try and hang in there it’s more of a gamble than playing the way we are.”
He talks about how his team has changed from before: “One of the first things was we had to be honest with ourselves, because two years ago it was pretty ugly where we were sat in international cricket, and not everyone was enjoying themselves. We had to work out how this team wanted to be known and the changes we needed to make.
“Then you go about trying to ensure the environment firstly makes guys feel comfortable, but also that there’s some accountability there as well. Because it’s not my team, it’s not [head coach] Mike Hesson’s team, it’s the New Zealand cricket team, and there is a responsibility there on each player to make sure they turn up and try their best. But if guys do that, we provide them with a good environment where they can enjoy themselves and start to develop as people and cricketers.”
How has captaincy changed Brendon the person? McCullum says, “In the last two and a half years I’ve grown a lot and I think I’m a better person than I was then. To an extent that’s the luxury of playing as long as I have, but there’s obviously more to it than that.
“I loved playing cricket as a kid, that’s why I got into the game, and just because there’s more at stake now, it doesn’t mean you should lose the innocence of why you got into the game in the first place.
“For a long time I had lost that, and I think the team had lost that, but it’s one thing we’ve tried to recapture. It sounds corny, but we talk about the little boy who fell in love with the game, and that’s what we’ve tried to do as a group. When you have that mindset you can be positive and aggressive because you’re thinking about what can go right, rather than what might go wrong.
“There was no soul about how we went about our cricket. I think now people know they’re going to see every man chase the ball to the boundary to try and save one run, and guys play with some freedom and an aggressive brand of cricket because we feel that resonates with New Zealanders. Two years ago we weren’t doing those things.”
Has he always been a risk taker, a gambler? McCullum says, “I guess I have a similar mindset in life, because I have a pretty good time. I’m very lucky to have a wonderful wife and three kids, and a really good group of friends, and you don’t mind going for a beer and to the races and having a punt in that respect, that’s what gives me good satisfaction as well, but I wouldn’t say I was a massive gambler.”
And what if doesn’t come off? How does he deal with losses, such as the defeat in the first Test match against England at Lord’s? McCullum: “You’re still disappointed, and probably even slightly embarrassed, but sometimes if you’re going to play like that there are times you still make silly mistakes. But I believe it’s the style which I believe will most help my game and the role I have within the team, and as long as you stay pretty true to that, you give yourself a good chance.”
