McCullum insists there's no rift with Stokes after turmoil in English cricket

Stokes and Atkinson are back in the team for the third and deciding test at Trent Bridge starting Thursday — the series is tied at 1-1 — and a report in British newspaper The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday said there was a rift between Stokes and the team leadership, which includes McCullum.

That was denied by McCullum, who said he had a “great catchup” with Stokes for more than an hour Tuesday morning.

“He looks ready to go, enthusiastic about the week, and from our point of view it’s nice to have the band back together,” McCullum said.

“We’ve been through a lot together as a working pair in leadership positions here in English cricket,” the New Zealander added. “In the end, we both want what’s right and what’s best for English cricket, and we’re crystal clear on the direction we want this team to take.”

McCullum never publicly backed Stokes to return as captain while the investigation was ongoing and said “I worry for him” in light of the post-first test night out that included a trip to a nightclub.

Since then, Stokes has played for his county team, Durham, and hit 95.

Now, McCullum said Stokes looked “outstanding” and “fantastic.”

“I think we had a process we had to go through, things needed to be ticked off, and we’ve arrived at this stage now, and we’re excited to see him back leading us on,” he said.

England won the first test by 115 runs before New Zealand tied the series with a dominant 253-run win at The Oval.

Stokes replaces Jordan Cox in the team and Matthew Fisher is the pacer giving way to accommodate Atkinson's return.

In the other change by England for the third test, Jamie Smith is back from paternity leave and takes over from James Rew as wicketkeeper.

England team: Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Ben Stokes (captain), Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket