BIRMINGHAM (United Kingdom) (AFP) – England coach Brendon McCullum believes an overhauled Test side have developed a "harder feel" after launching their home season with a comprehensive 3-0 series rout of the West Indies.
A 4-1 loss in India was the catalyst for England, in McCullum's choice of words, to both "refine" their aggressive approach and revamp their red-ball side.
England record wicket-taker James Anderson was persuaded into international retirement, while both 100-cap veteran Jonny Bairstow and Ben Foakes were leapfrogged into the wicketkeeper's position by Test newcomer Jamie Smith.
Fast bowler Gus Atkinson was also given a debut during the West Indies series, with Shoaib Bashir replacing Jack Leach as England's first-choice spinner.
The youthful trio of Smith, Atkinson and Bashir all made a mark as England beat the West Indies by an innings and 114 runs at Lord's and then by 241 runs at Trent Bridge, before wrapping up the series with a 10-wicket win at Edgbaston on Sunday.
"No changes are ever easy, are they?," said England red-ball boss McCullum. "But we knew we needed to make a couple of improvements as a side and we brought in some new faces."
The former New Zealand captain added: "You don't ask for instant gratification when it comes to them but the way the series played out you'd say the guys have certainly shown they're good enough at this level.
"What we've seen from Gus Atkinson, from Shoaib Bashir and Jamie Smith, is that international cricket is where they belong and they've performed accordingly.
"Sometimes when you lose you have a period of reflection and what we've seen is a team which has bounced back with a bit of a harder feel to it. I think we're a stronger team now than we may have been in the past."
'INCREDIBLE ANDERSON'
Anderson bowed out after the series opener at Lord's with 704 Test wickets, the most by any fast bowler in the 147-year history of the format, with only spinners Shane Warne (708 wickets) and Muttiah Muralitharan (800) ahead of him in the all-time standings.
England, however, have retained Anderson's services as a fast-bowling mentor, with a grateful McCullum saying: "What Jimmy's given in the past couple of matches is quite incredible. He's fitted seamlessly into our group of coaches.
"It's never easy but he seems really content right now, it's great to have him and I feel very lucky that he's part of our group."
England would dearly love to be able to take a battery of genuine fast bowlers with them to Australia when they seek to regain the Ashes in 2025/26.
"With the bowlers now we've got some pretty good ammo (ammunition) that we are going to need on flat wickets when times arise," said McCullum.
"Gus has touched 90mph (145kmh), been able to jag the ball off a good length and also been able to operate a bumper plan for a period of time.
"The way Chris Woakes bowled was outstanding. Then you add the speed of Mark Wood, which is quite frightening really.
"Shoaib Bashir and Stokesy (England captain Ben Stokes) are in there too... We're not the finished article but this series is a step forward."
Meanwhile, speculation continues to surround the future of England white-ball coach Matthew Mott, with the Australian's position under threat as director of cricket Rob Key conducts a review following the limited-overs team's lacklustre defence of both their 50-over and T20 World Cup titles.
"I don't know how it's going to work out to be honest, I haven't really followed it because you're worried about doing your own job," said McCullum.
"Motty is a good bloke and a very good coach. Whatever happens he'll be fine."