England have been “exposed” in India and have some “deep thinking” ahead, says coach Brendon McCullum.

The tourists won the first Test but subsequently endured four losses to slip to their first series defeat since McCullum took charge in 2022. “A lot of good will come out of this tour. I’m 100% confident about that,” McCullum told BBC Sport. “We will be a better cricket team for the experience, although it hurts a lot at the moment.”

England’s victory in the first Test in Hyderabad was one of their best overseas successes, particularly given India’s fearsome home record—the hosts had not lost a Test series in this country in 12 years.

But the tourists missed excellent chances in the second, third, and fourth Tests and were 100-1 on the opening morning of the fifth before unravelling to lose by an innings and 64 runs.

The latest setback in Dharamsala means England have been thrashed in seven of their past 12 Tests and are winless in three series. And New Zealander McCullum said this tour had “taught him more” about his team than ever before.

“Sometimes you can get away with things, but when you’re exposed in the way we have been in the back end of this series in particular, it does require some pretty deep thinking and some adjustment to make sure we’re staying true to what we believe in,” continued McCullum.

“If anything, we got more timid as the series went on, and that was because of the pressure that was applied to us by the Indian line-up.”

In a wide-ranging interview, McCullum covered a lot of themes and said: He and captain Ben Stokes are “not afraid” to have serious conversations with players. England need to “work out” who is going to be their first-choice wicketkeeper

Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir can pressure Jack Leach to become England’s number one spinner. England will retain James Anderson in the group if he wants to keep playing. England’s next Test series is against the West Indies in July, followed by Sri Lanka at the end of the home summer.

There are tours of Pakistan and New Zealand next winter, before India visits in the summer of 2025. The Ashes series in Australia in the winter of 2025–26 will be the final of McCullum’s four-year contract. England recalled Ben Foakes to keep wicket in India after Jonny Bairstow held the gloves for last summer’s Ashes.

Though Foakes’ glovework was superb, his highest score with the bat was 47. Bairstow, who played his 100th Test in Dharamsala, too failed to make a half-century.

When batter Harry Brook, who missed the tour for personal reasons, returns to the team, there is likely to be only one of Foakes or Bairstow; otherwise, England might go to Durham’s Ollie Robinson, James Rew of Somerset, or Jamie Smith from Surrey. “We’ll work that out in time,” said McCullum, who kept wickets in 52 of his 101 Tests for New Zealand.

“We have got time on our side to be able to make judgments moving forward. Whatever we decide, we will put the investment and the support in and attempt to give the most amount of time for that to be effective.”

Lancashire left-armer Hartley and Somerset off-spinner Bashir were selected for this tour despite scant first-class experience but had to play an enlarged role after Leach suffered a knee injury in the first Test.

Hartley, 24, ended the series as England’s best wicket-taker, while 20-year-old Bashir got two five-wicket hauls in his three Tests. And McCullum claimed “everyone realises” the pair are battling with Leach to be England’s number one.

“Jack will understand that himself,” stated McCullum. “It’s a terrific position to be in when you’ve got depth and numerous types of alternatives. We’ve got to accept that, and there will be some hard options throughout the summer.”

England deployed only three speed bowlers—Anderson, Mark Wood, and Ollie Robinson—across the series. Anderson is 41, while Wood is 34. Robinson, 30, was underwhelming in his only appearance in Ranchi.

Chris Woakes, 35, will be considered in the home summer, but with Stuart Broad retired and the current first-choice pacers aged, England may begin to invest in the likes of Matthew Potts, Gus Atkinson, and Josh Tongue.

Anderson became the first fast bowler to surpass 700 Test wickets at Dharamsala, and McCullum believes the Lancashire man still has “hunger and desire.”.

“What his next ambitions are, I’m not sure,” continued McCullum. “If you take age out of it and look at the impact and speed he is bowling, the skills he is possessing, and the conditions we are going to come up against in the next 18 months, if Jimmy wants to keep going, we’ll certainly look to have him around.”

England’s casual approach has led to complaints that the setting is too comfortable and failure is too often tolerated. Since McCullum and Stokes assumed over, only batsman Alex Lees has been dropped following a protracted stint in the side.

After the defeat in Dharamsala, Stokes claimed anyone who writes him or England off does so “at your own peril,” and McCullum said the coach and captain are “fiercely competitive.”.

“While you guys know me as a pretty relaxed person, I still have a fierce drive to ensure that we will get this team to where we want to get to,” he stated.

“That will allow some introspection over the next several weeks, then we start working towards fixing what has unfolded here and becoming the team we should be.

“We like to operate in a really calm, enjoyable, and positive environment, but we don’t mistake that for not having tough conversations when they are required.”