Felt like we over-prepared: McCullum

England arrived into this Ashes series knowing it would be an existential assessment of their methods. After squandering an opportunity in the opening Test, a heavy defeat in the second has left Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum needing to rally their troops from 2-0 down.

By McCullum's own assessment, England were lacking in all departments. "There were areas with the bat where we were deficient. There were areas with the ball where we were deficient. And there were areas in the field where we were deficient," he admitted.

Much of the blame has been pinned on a rigid batting approach built on ceaseless attack. McCullum noted England must be better at identifying risks with the bat and opportunities with the ball. "You've got to be quite malleable in your plans… And if anything, we've probably been a little bit slow with that in the last two games," he conceded.

McCullum claimed England were 'over-prepared' and not mentally fresh heading into the second Test. "I actually felt like we over-prepared, to be honest. We had five intense training days… the most important thing is to feel a little bit fresh and make sure your top two inches is completely sound," he noted.

"The boys just need a few days off and probably need to change up a few of the training methods a little bit… Would be good to spend a bit of time casually and just let the dust settle on what's been a pretty intense couple of weeks and start to plot and plan our way back into the series," he added.

On the challenges of playing in Australia, he said: "One is obviously the hostility, which you either shy away from or you lean into it and embrace it. And the other aspect is the conditions… you've got to be very quick to adapt."

"The message from the captain, the message from myself, you can't come to this country and start sulking and feeling sorry for yourself when things haven't worked out. You can't have a glass jaw when you tour Australia. You've got to stand up. You've got to go again… And that's our job over the next nine days to get ready for the next one," he said, emphasizing the importance of keeping spirits up.

"Over the last three and a half years, we've [Stokes and myself] grown to become not just a good working pair, but also very good mates as well. We have a very similar approach to the game," he said.

McCullum defended his team's style and said they wouldn't change simply because they are under pressure. "We don't like losing. As long as you're able to get your team to stay tight and keep pressing on with the style of play that you want… then you're going to give yourself the best chance. And that will not change over the next few weeks just because we're under a bit of pressure," he affirmed.

"One thing that won't change is the language that we use within the dressing room, the way that we try and stay tight and cohesive as a group… When they [conditions] don't allow, then it's about being brave enough and adaptable enough to be able to hang in there and absorb the pressure," he added.

"If it was easy, then there wouldn't be as much fun. So look forward to it," he concluded.