Brendon McCullum framed the issue as one of perspective and proportionality, arguing that downtime is part of life on long tours and that England were not acting differently to other teams. “These guys are young men playing a highly pressurised sport, there’s an opportunity for us to guide and nurture as they become fully grown men who are dealing with some high pressure,” he said. He added that the Noosa break was “quite important” for the group and that he did not believe the players “did things to excess,” insisting they were still putting in the work away from public view.
