Ben Stokes plays down talk of McCullum disagreement but plans ‘different’ path to success

  • Stokes: ‘Agreeing on every single thing, that’s impossible’

  • Pair will ‘work together in a slightly different way’

Ben Stokes has moved to play down suggestions of a disagreement between himself and Brendon McCullum, insisting he and the England head coach remain aligned despite an Ashes defeat that, at times, suggested otherwise.

In a video released by the England and Wales Cricket Board on Tuesday, the England Test captain stressed that he and McCullum agreeing with each other all the time would be “unhealthy”. They continue to share the same overall vision for the team, he added, but things will look “different” this summer.

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‘Carelessly squandered’: Wisden scolds England’s tumultuous Ashes tour

  • Series defeat in Australia ‘a chance so blithely spurned’

  • Indian dominance and Starc’s sacrifice recognised

The latest edition of Wisden is ­unsparing in its criticism of England’s Test team, describing their Ashes defeat in Australia as a “wing-and-a-prayer” campaign that ended up “feckless, reckless and legless”.

Published this Thursday, the sport’s longstanding bible has a strong Indian flavour to its awards. Haseeb Hameed, captain of title-winning Nottinghamshire, is the sole Englishman among the five ­players of the year, with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and ­Mohammed Siraj recognised for their roles in last year’s memorable 2-2 Test series draw in England.

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Surrey v Leicestershire, Essex v Somerset, and more: county cricket, day four – live

Updates from 11am BST start across the grounds
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And the third! Aitchison on a hat-trick. A huge smile at the top of his run gets huger as Bailey plays inside the line and loses his stumps. Lancs 147-8. Mitch Stanley comes out, dropping his helmet and generally getting dressed as he does.

Second ball does it! Coughlin trudging back after a corking ball from Aitchison has him edging behind. Lancs 147-7, the lead 124.

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