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Gough Believes McCullum very Lucky To Keep England Coach Job, Admits Hurt Over Selector Snub

Wales Cricket Board: Former England fast bowler Darren Gough has said head coach Brendon McCullum was very lucky to retain his job as the head coach after the 4-1 debacle in the Ashes, while admitting he was disheartened on missing out on the role of national selector. Gough, who claimed 467 international wickets and previously served as Yorkshires managing director of cricket, missed out on becoming Englands new national selector, with the role going to former Australia batter Marcus North. North, who played 21 Tests for Australia, was appointed to the role by Rob Key, managing director of mens cricket at the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), ahead of other candidates, including Gough and Steven Finn, as the replacement for Luke Wright. I think Baz McCullum is realistically very lucky to carry on as Englands head coach. If youre not winning games, your job is going to come under scrutiny. Its a fouryear cycle, so if you go to Australia on the fourth year of it and you win, or you get really close, you can say theres been a big change, and lets give it another couple of years. It didnt happen, but I wish them the best of luck. I like the way they play, but it needs to be toned down a bit. We need a bit of steel, and Id like to think well see that this summer, Gough told The Overlaps Stick to Cricket show. Asked if McCullum, the former New Zealand skipper, would face increased scrutiny this season, Gough replied in the affirmative. Absolutely. Theyre under pressure, and they should be, I dont think theres any doubt about that. Quizzed on sadness over losing out to North in the race to be Englands chief selector, Gough stated, I was disheartened. Ill be honest, it did hurt me. I could have challenged them in the right areas. Im mature now, Im not like I was 10 years ago, a hothead. Ive mellowed a lot, and Ive managed people. My honest opinion was, if they went down the route of someone whod played for England, who has done all the roles in the game, I might just get this. This is a hard role because there are a lot of repair jobs to be done. Quizzed on sadness over losing out to North in the race to be Englands chief selector, Gough stated, I was disheartened. Ill be honest, it did hurt me. I could have challenged them in the right areas. Im mature now, Im not like I was 10 years ago, a hothead. Ive mellowed a lot, and Ive managed people. Also Read: Live Cricket Score He's Australian that's not a safer option, is it? Key didn't think I'd enjoy the role, which I didn't agree with either, because I wouldn't have gone for that role. I love the sport, and I'm into data and writing. I write a lot and watch a lot of cricket. I think it's because he's the director of cricket at Durham. I would say as director of cricket at Durham, he doesn't watch as much cricket as he probably should. Article Source: IANS