The end of Bazball? English greats call for heads following Ashes thrashing

English cricket greats are calling for the sacking of Test coach Brendon McCullum following what has been a disastrous Ashes tour so far.

The visitors lost the Ashes in just 11 days of cricket, with Australia retaining on the fifth day in Adelaide on Sunday.

England has had moments where they have looked capable of defeating the Aussies, particularly in Perth, but also early on day five in Adelaide, before a combination of poor shot selection and incredible catching brought an end to their hopes.

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McCullum has been at the helm since 2022 and immediately shook up Test cricket with his 'Bazball' philosophy, taking aggressive play to a whole new level.

However, after failing to regain the Ashes at home in 2023 and now their destruction on this tour, Michael Vaughan believes it is time for a change.

"It’s never nice to see people lose their jobs, but we cannot pretend that Rob Key, Brendon McCullum and those around them are not under massive pressure," Vaughan wrote in the Telegraph.

"Ashley Giles was sacked after the Covid tour here. Duncan Fletcher was arguably England’s greatest coach, and doesn’t get lauded anywhere near as much as he should because it ended in tears in Australia.

"Andy Flower finished up after a heavy defeat here, too."

Vaughan's frustrations stem from the fact that he believes this side had the talent to get the job done, particularly given that Australia has been the team significantly hampered by injuries in this series.

Steve Smith missed in Adelaide, Pat Cummins didn't play the first two Tests, and it seems he won't play Boxing Day. Josh Hazlewood has missed the entire series, Usman Khawaja was effectively a spectator in Perth due to his back injury, and now Nathan Lyon has injured his hamstring.

"In the end, with defeat inside 11 days, it’s the worst I can remember in Australia," the former England captain said.

"Some teams we’ve sent here had no chance. This time, Australia have had all the bad luck.

"This England team can play, they have talent, but the application comes only occasionally.

"England has had a cockiness about them for three years, and the entire cricketing world has wanted to shut them up as a result. This tour has been humbling for them.

"Aussies are laughing. They can’t believe how fragile this team have been given the quality in the side."

Fellow legend of English cricket Geoffrey Boycott agrees, calling for the end of the 'Bazball' era.

"A lot of credit should go to Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes for what they have done for our cricket, but it is obvious that Bazball has run its race," Boycott told The Telegraph.

"Stokes and McCullum are like men digging a hole to nowhere. If what you are doing isn’t working, then stop digging. Hubris has taken over from common sense, and that cannot be allowed to carry on.

"Stokes and McCullum are like men digging a hole to nowhere. If what you are doing isn’t working, then stop digging.

'What would I do? Change the coach. We are tired of this duo talking a good game but not delivering against the best teams."

Boycott added that he would sit Stokes down to discuss changing his attitude, and if he doesn't budge, then the team needs a new captain.

However, he would not hand the mantle to the "irresponsible" vice captain Harry Brook.

Another former England skipper in Nasser Hussain, has also called out McCullum, suggesting the team came into this Ashes summer "underprepared" and over-confident.

"For me, today and this game have pretty much summed up England's Ashes. They are and have been playing catch-up cricket," Hussain told Sky Sports.

"They have gone hard the last couple of days, but this Test match was lost at 8/160 when England batted first, and since then they've been catching up, and I would say the same about this tour.

"They came into it underprepared in the first Test match and were a little bit surprised at the intensity of Ashes cricket.

"So, fair play to Australia. As Brendon McCullum said, out batted, out bowled, out caught. Those catches from Marnus Labuschagne were unbelievable."