England coach Brendon McCullum has admitted that the team may have erred in choosing to bowl first in the second Test against India at Edgbaston — a rare admission from a coaching setup that usually avoids looking back.
Captain Ben Stokes opted to chase in the fourth innings, a strategy that has often paid off in the Bazball era. However, it backfired spectacularly this time as India made the most of ideal batting conditions to post a mammoth 587 in their first innings. England, in contrast, could only muster 253 and 271, losing by a massive 336 runs.
“I think as the game unfolded we probably looked back on that toss and said ‘did we miss an opportunity there?’ and it’s probably fair,” McCullum told BBC Test Match Special. “We didn’t expect the wicket would play quite as it did and hence we probably got it slightly wrong.”
It marked just the second loss for England under Stokes after choosing to bowl first — a tactic he’s used in 10 of 11 home Tests where he’s won the toss.
McCullum’s openness stands in contrast to the team’s usual philosophy of focusing on the positives. Under Stokes and McCullum, England have chased successfully on several occasions, including a record 378-run chase against India at Edgbaston in 2022. But the gamble did not pay off this time.
Stokes, however, deflected from the toss decision, instead highlighting his team’s failure to finish off India’s lower order. India were 211-5 at one stage but rallied to take control.
“No-one’s got a crystal ball, no-one really knows what a wicket’s going to do,” Stokes said. “We just weren’t able to bust them open. We had a chance to potentially bowl them out for under 350.”
Looking ahead, England have added pace bowler Gus Atkinson to the squad for the third Test at Lord’s starting Thursday. Atkinson missed the first two Tests due to a hamstring injury. Jofra Archer could also make his long-awaited return after a series of injuries. Sam Cook and Jamie Overton are being considered due to the tight turnaround between matches.
The rest of the squad remains unchanged, with England hoping to bounce back strongly at the home of cricket and level the series, which India now lead 1-1.
England squad for third Test against India:
Ben Stokes (captain), Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Jofra Archer, Sam Cook, Jamie Overton, Shoaib Bashir.
