Aaron Finch labels English cricket a 'circus' after Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum's exits and says Australians are 'laughing'

23.07.2026, 02:30 skysports.com

Former Australia batter Aaron Finch likened England's recent coaching and captaincy upheaval to a 'circus' and says many Australians have been watching things unfold from afar 'giggling' at their old rivals.

Ben Stokes sensationally announced his retirement from international cricket during his side's final Test match of their series defeat by New Zealand in June, with head coach Brendon McCullum later dismissed as head coach of the red-ball side.

The Test side are therefore set for major changes amid a slump in form, having lost seven of their last nine matches.

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Speaking to the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast, Finch, who captained Australia in both white-ball formats, questioned England's stubbornness during their recent tour Down Under, as well as some of the decisions being made by England's hierarchy.

"You never want to see players feel like they're being forced out or coaches be sacked," Finch told Sky Sports Cricket's Michael Atherton. "But the way that it's all panned out, it has been a little bit like a circus.

"When you look back to the preparation of the Ashes, I thought, not having a warm-up game for whatever reason. Everyone's got their opinion on why they weren't able to have one at the WACA, which is the closest replication you can have to Perth Stadium.

"And almost shutting everybody out saying: 'No, we know best. We know what we're doing. We're here to win'.

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"And then for it to fall apart like that, to see where it goes in the New Zealand series, where New Zealand played traditional hard Test Cricket and found a way to grind out a win.

"They go on and win a series, which is hard to do away from home. Every team says that winning away from home is their biggest challenge."

McCullum and Stokes' departures will bring an end to the 'Bazball' era, which has seen England exhibit a brash brand of cricket that has raised eyebrows among some.

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"I think that when you look at it as a whole, you say there's been a few decisions that, whether it be style of play, shot selection, decisions behind the scenes, as an Australian, you sit back and giggle a little bit because at different times we've been in that position as well. But you can understand it," Finch added.

Atherton also asked Finch whether any of his Australia teams had ever been subject to a curfew.

"Never," he replied. "If there was, that would have been played out in black and white.

"It's hard to know exactly what is going on without being inside those four walls.

"So you can speculate all you want, but from the outside, it has looked like a bit of a mess. So they're in this tricky situation now where they're trying to obviously find a Test coach."