McCullum concedes mistakes were made after England suffer another Ashes failure

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Cricket - The Ashes - Australia v England - First Test - Perth Stadium, Perth, Australia - November 21, 2025 England head coach Brendon McCullum during the warm up before the start of play on day one REUTERS/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake

ADELAIDE, Dec 21 - Brendon McCullum admitted he had made mistakes as England head coach and said their preparations may have been flawed after the tourists surrendered the Ashes with defeat in the third test in Adelaide on Sunday.

Englands light preparations and lack of tour matches in Australia drew heavy criticism from former players and pundits, and the subsequent Ashes failure has put McCullums role under major scrutiny.

It is disappointing when you lose and Im sure there will be plenty of questions asked and rightfully so, McCullum told BBC Test Match Special after Englands 82-run loss at Adelaide Oval.

We havent got everything right. I havent got everything right as a coach and I put my hand up for that.

England had one intra-squad match with the England Lions in Perth and opted against further match practice following defeats in Perth and Brisbane.

Their preparations were similar for other tours, including to India and Pakistan last year.

I have been very strong about the conviction we had and our preparation, McCullum said.

For us, it was a matter of trying to replicate what we have done in series that have been successful for us away