England coach Brendon McCullum failed to “read the room” in saying his side “overprepared” following defeat in the second Ashes Test in Brisbane, says Durham coach Ryan Campbell.<\/p>\n
The tourists have been criticised for their preparation for this series, playing one intra-squad warm-up game before the first Test defeat in Perth and opting not to send any of the first XI to play in the Lions’ pink-ball day-night match against the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra.<\/p>\n
Instead England opted to acclimatise to the heat in Brisbane between Tests and had five training sessions leading up to the day-night match at the Gabba.<\/p>\n
England are on a four-day break in Noosa, a resort town on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, before flying to Adelaide on Saturday to prepare for the third Test there, which starts on Wednesday, 17 December (23:30 GMT, 16 December).<\/p>\n
“I kind of understand what McCullum’s saying, but he hasn’t read the room,” Campbell told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Ashes second Test review show.<\/a><\/p>\n “Are they that far in the bubble that they are not listening to all the fans?<\/p>\n “The fans seem very unhappy with the perception of England cricket. I know they work really hard, but I’m not sure you need to say we ‘overprepared’.”<\/p>\n Campbell said McCullum’s words do not tally with director of men’s cricket Rob Key calling for England to stop talking “rubbish”<\/a> in interviews and post-match press conferences earlier this year, adding he cannot see how the New Zealander could defend his suggestion his side “trained too much” before the second Test.<\/p>\n However, former England bowler Sir James Anderson said he could see the reason behind McCullum’s comments.<\/p>\n