McCullum and Stokes bring jolt of excitement to new-look England

When England played New Zealand at Lord's last summer, caution took over.

Set 273 from 75 overs to win on the final day following Black Caps captain Kane Williamson's bold declaration, England were nowhere near as bold, showing no appetite whatsoever for a run chase.

Then-skipper Joe Root and then-coach Chris Silverwood perhaps felt a line-up routinely shredded in India at the backend of the previous winter, and now shorn of Ben Stokes due to injury, had no chance of victory. Perhaps they were concerned of the consequences should things go wrong.

If a similar opportunity presents itself this year, the attitude should be markedly different. For this is the Stokes and Brendon McCullum era. Backward steps are unlikely be tolerated. They have never been part of Stokes and McCullum's make-ups.

In his unveiling as England's new captain, Stokes spoke about his desire for his team to comprise of "selfless cricketers who make decisions based on winning games".

McCullum, meanwhile, said he wanted to eliminate what he viewed as an "English fear of failure" when he was presented to the media for the first time since being named Test coach.

McCullum and Stokes' appointments come after a dejecting period for English Test cricket - 11 defeats and just one win 17 Test matches, with batting collapses rife.

Stokes' predecessor Root must have become increasingly deflated as rest and rotation often deprived him of his best team all while he had the pressures of propping up a batting line-up singlehandedly. McCullum's predecessor Silverwood, meanwhile, seemed far from inspirational.

But with two of the game's great galvanisers now in charge - Stokes on the field and McCullum facilitating behind the scenes - there has been a much-needed jolt