Harry Brook says England’s Test side have had enough of being “the nice guys”.
The Yorkshire batter was speaking at Old Trafford, where former All Blacks mental-skills coach Gilbert Enoka is spending the week with Brendon McCullum’s squad ahead of Thursday’s fourth Test against India.
Enoka, celebrated in New Zealand rugby circles for a “no-dickheads policy” that helped deliver back-to-back World Cups in 2011 and 2015, first addressed England in May and has been dipping in and out of camp ever since. His remit is straightforward: toughen the collective mindset in a year that still holds a live series against India and an away Ashes.
Third-Test flashpoint sets the tone
England’s appetite for abrasion surfaced at Lord’s, when Zak Crawley delayed a late-evening over and India, led by Shubman Gill, let him know exactly what they thought. From the dressing-room balcony Brook took notes.
“It was good fun,” Brook said. “We watched the Indians go hard at Creeps (Crawley) and Ducky. We had a conversation, we thought it was the perfect opportunity to not be the nice guys that we have been in the past three years, to go out there and put them under more pressure than what they have probably had before.”
The chat became team policy that evening. “He [McCullum] actually said a few days before that we are too nice sometimes, and I brought it up the night before the last day: ‘Baz said the other day we’re too nice, I think tomorrow is a perfect opportunity to really get stuck into them’.”
Brook accepts it is impossible to measure whether the extra verbals produced wickets. Still, he reckons the volume helped. “I don’t know if it had an effect on how we got the wickets, but it certainly had an effect on the atmosphere, the crowd. We bowled really well and got the wickets in the end.”
Respect intact despite the edge
Stumps saw handshakes all round, Ben Stokes and Gill agreeing the needle had sharpened a riveting contest rather than soured it. No Code-of-Conduct warnings followed, which pleased England’s hierarchy: confrontation without crossing the line was the brief.
Enoka’s influence
The New Zealander has been sitting down primarily with McCullum and Stokes, but players report informal chats as well. One senior bowler described Enoka’s main message as “clear role clarity and calling out anything that drifts”. Nothing mystical, more a nudge towards everyday standards: tidy dressing-room, punctual warm-ups, honest feedback.
A former New Zealand netball international, Enoka is familiar with cross-sport work. Chelsea FC hired him last season in search of a culture reset; he lasted three months but left a well-regarded presentation pack behind. England’s hope is that his cameo stretches their current wave of form into something more lasting.
Nice guys, winning guys?
Whether chirp alone can decide a Test is doubtful. James Anderson was more quick-witted with the ball than the tongue at Lord’s, and Mark Wood’s extra pace remains England’s most reliable intimidator. Yet opponents have hinted that this side can occasionally be, well, pleasant. India’s senior players were happy enough to shake hands at Edgbaston last summer; Australia joked about post-series drinks two winters ago. McCullum suspects a little bite would not hurt, so long as it feels real rather than choreographed.
Risks and rewards
History offers cautionary tales. Kevin Pietersen thought England went overboard on “enforcer” talk in 2008, and the side that followed Andrew Strauss’s 2011 No.1 ranking became, in parts, hard to like. But Brook, 26 and still early in his Test career, is clear that the current dressing-room has enough trust to police itself. If anyone steps over the line, senior players expect an immediate check.
Next test in Manchester
India trail 2-1 but arrive with Jasprit Bumrah fully fit and conditions likely to aid reverse swing rather than extravagant spin. England are deciding whether to recall Jack Leach, nominally their No.1 slow bowler, or stick with the extra seamer who gave them control at Lord’s.
Whatever the XI, Brook insists the new tone will stay. “We’re not talking about sledging for the sake of it,” said one squad member off-record, “it’s about competing.” A small semantic tweak, perhaps, yet one Enoka argues can make a big difference over five long days.
England have four more of those this week, with a series and, perhaps, a new identity on the line.
