Stand-in Test captain Ollie Pope said Brendon McCullum can transform the fortunes of England's limited-overs teams in the same way he has reinvigorated the red-ball side.England cricket chiefs on Tuesday announced the New Zealander would take charge of all formats from January and that he has extended his contract until the end of 2027.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We've seen the impact he's had on us as a Test team and as individuals, which I think he can then transfer into the white-ball stuff as well," said Pope, speaking ahead of the third Test against Sri Lanka, starting on Friday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"He brings the best out of each other. He's a real optimist and I think that's really good in the cricket world. So, very exciting for English cricket overall."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
McCullum, 42, inherits white-ball teams that have surrendered titles in the 50-over and 20-over world cups in the past 12 months.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
When the former New Zealand captain took charge of England's Test side in May 2022 they were at a low ebb, with just one win in 17 games.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But under his leadership they have won 19 of their 28 Tests, playing an exciting attacking game that has been labelled "Bazball".<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Pope, who has struggled with the bat in recent matches, said McCullum had given him confidence and freedom in his personal game.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"He's got a great outlook on the game in general and just being able to kind of draw a line under your best and your worst weeks as well," said the batter, who is deputising as skipper for the injured Ben Stokes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I think that's probably one of his biggest skills as a player, but now he's sort of got that into his coaching as well. He's a massive optimist."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
England, 2-0 up in the three-match series against Sri Lanka, have brought in left-arm seamer Josh Hull for the final Test at The Oval.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The two-metre tall 20-year-old, who only made his first-class debut last year, replaces Matthew Potts.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
England are just one win away from completing a clean sweep of home Test triumphs for the first time since 2004, having moved on emphatically from a disappointing 4-1 defeat by India in the winter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Before the Sri Lanka series they beat West Indies 3-0.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"It'd be special to win 6-0 this summer," said Pope. "And I think winning's a habit, isn't it? So I think going forward it'll put us in good stead. And obviously we've got a lot more cricket to come."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Pope was asked whether taking on the captaincy was affecting his batting -- he has mustered just 30 runs in four innings against Sri Lanka so far.<\/p>\r\n\r\n