Brendon McCullum expects England to go 'a little harder' on Australia in second Ashes Test

England's coach Brendon McCullum has vowed to go even harder at Australia in the second Ashes Test at Lord's despite questionable tactics in the first. The former New Zealand captain said England's efforts were top-notch and expect them to retain their confidence in the next game.

Australia stunned England in the fourth-innings run-chase of 281 at Edgbaston despite losing eight wickets, with 72 still to get. Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon held their nerves to steer their side over the finish line.

Reacting to the two-wicket loss, McCullum said he had no complaints from England and backs them to go even harder at the tourists at Lord's. As quoted by the BBC, he said:

"I'm sure they'll stick to that strategy, which is great because we'll go a little harder. The way that we played validated our style of play. If we'd have got a little bit of the rub of the green then we might have been on the other side of it. The guys are proud of the efforts that they put in and I'm sure we'll go to Lord's with a lot of confidence."

England's declaration of 393-8 in 78 overs on day one came under fire, especially with Joe Root batting on 118*. Ben Stokes later defended it, saying he doesn't regret it at all.

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"We always want to try to take the game forward" - Brendon McCullum

England cricket team. (Credits: Getty)

McCullum admitted that if slight luck had gone England's way, things might have been different. The 41-year-old added:

"We always want to try to take the game forward. We want to try to seize opportunities where we think we can put opposition teams under pressure. Obviously, you'd rather have won the game - that's just the nature of sport sometimes. If we'd have got a little bit of the rub of the green then we might have been on the other side of it."

The second Test starts on Wednesday (June 28). With England having endured no series loss under the new regime, they will be under pressure to level the series at Lord's.