Brendon McCullum warns England of ‘tough task’ ahead against Pakistan

England’s head coach Brendon McCullum has issued a warning to his team, reminding them that replicating their 2022 series success in Pakistan will be a daunting challenge, particularly given the extreme heat expected in Multan. 

The three-match Test series kicks off on Monday, and McCullum is wary of the conditions as well as Pakistan's potential comeback.

In 2022, England stunned the cricketing world by achieving a historic 3-0 victory over Pakistan on their home turf, McCullum’s first away series as head coach. It was the first time any team had whitewashed Pakistan in a Test series on home soil. Prior to that, England had won only two out of 24 Tests in Pakistan, making the achievement even more remarkable.

However, McCullum knows that past success will not guarantee an easy series this time around. Despite Pakistan’s recent home defeat to Bangladesh (2-0), McCullum expects a fierce challenge.

"What we achieved a couple of years ago was immense and we're very proud of that achievement, but if we look at the history of touring teams here in Pakistan, it is probably an outlier rather than anything else," McCullum told The Independent.

"We're very realistic as we come to the series, that we're going to have to play well against a very proud sporting nation. Pakistan in their own conditions, as history would suggest, is a bloody tough task," McCullum added, emphasizing that Pakistan will be "fiercely competitive."

On top of Pakistan's cricketing strengths, McCullum highlighted the additional challenge posed by the sweltering October heat in Multan. The team last visited in December 2022 when the cooler conditions were much more forgiving.

"I think it was about 20 degrees last time we came here. We had jumpers on in the morning and it chilled off at night. The overhead conditions are a little bit more extreme, so that’s going to present its own challenges," McCullum said, noting that the intense heat has already made an impact on the team during their warm-up activities, including golf.

"The first couple of days we got here, when we were out on the golf course it was very hot, very challenging to hold on to your club so that was one of our biggest concerns. But since then we seem to have got used to it," the coach added.